Made
by Xernes
Summary: Werewolves are after Sookie. When a couple shows up at her house, she tries to fight them off with Eric, but is badly wounded. Eric can either let her die, or he can turn her.
1. Chapter 1

**Title: **Made

**Author's Note: **I am starting this fic off as rated T, but it will eventually be M. When it becomes M, I will obviously change the rating, and I will also inform in the A/N. This fic is set after episode 302 Beautifully Broken. Enjoy~!

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**_Made_ - Chapter 1**

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Eric slammed Sookie hard against the side of her house. "Let me in. Now."

Sookie saw his fangs gleaming in the moonlight. Her heart was pounding in her chest and her eyes were wide with fear. "Won't you please come in, Mr. Northman?"

He grabbed Sookie's arm with his cold hand and dragged her into her house behind him. He could smell werewolves in her house; perhaps three or four. Eric grinned widely at the prospect of a battle, much like an excited child in a candy shop would. Sookie frantically searched in her purse for the pistol that Terry had lent her. When her fingertips touched the cool metal, she held her breath and swallowed her fear. She extended her arms in front of her and her fingertip was positioned to pull the trigger.

The first werewolf emerged from the darkness and growled.

Eric showed the wolf his long fangs and he screamed before he charged. He felt the werewolf's teeth sink into his arm, but Eric swiftly moved to break the wolf's neck. The wolf dropped lifeless to the floor with a heavy thud.

"There are more," Eric hissed at Sookie.

Sookie was surprised to see that Eric was still smiling. She didn't see the fun in getting attacked by a werewolf. "How do you know?" she asked him, still holding onto the pistol firmly.

"I can smell them. You better be ready to use that," he told her simply with raised brows. Sookie was intriguing with a gun in her hands. "You might have to."

Part of him hoped she would, simply for the thrill of a good fight.

Sookie nodded and gripped the gun a little tighter. They were silent for several moments; all Sookie could hear was her heavy breathing and her beating heart. Then, out of the corner of her eye, she saw movement. "Werewolf!" she shouted to Eric, turning on her heel and she fired the gun at it. She heard the dog yelp and stagger, but it wasn't dead. She shot her gun twice more until it breathed its last and fell to the ground.

When she turned back to Eric, he was smiling at her. He looked impressed. "I guess you do know how to handle that gun."

Sookie flashed him a small grin, but Eric didn't grin back. He saw two werewolves charging toward Sookie from behind. Eric quickly moved to push her out of the way and jumped on top of one of the wolves. He sunk his teeth deep into the wolf's neck and ripped off a large chunk of fur. Thick red blood ran freely from his mouth and he bit the wolf again, biting further down into the wound and tore off a bloody hunk of muscle that he spat out to the floor. The wolf clawed his chest sharply and sunk its teeth into Eric's cold flesh. Without missing a beat from the pain, Eric latched his teeth once more onto the wolf and his fangs pierced deep enough to kill.

He stilled. He didn't hear Sookie. He only heard what sounded like a dog gnawing playfully at a bone.

He turned his head to look over his shoulder. Sookie had bite wounds all over her body, her clothes were stained with dark red blood, she wasn't moving and the gun was on the floor about five feet from her hand. The wolf was feasting off her flesh. Eric was at the werewolf in less than a second and threw it against the wall with all his strength. The impact made the wall crack. Before the wolf could fall to the floor, Eric had it in his hands. He stabbed his fangs into the wolf numerous times. Blood flew from the struggling wolf and ran from his mouth down his neck and torso. Eric didn't stop until he no longer felt the werewolf's pulse in his blood.

He was at Sookie's side instantly. Eric's first thought was to get Sookie to drink his blood, but she was unconscious and her state was too severe that Eric worried that she would not even survive the time it took for his blood to heal her.

Eric had two options: he could let her die, or he could change her.

He couldn't let her die; he swore to himself that he'd keep her alive. Even if it came to this.

Eric gingerly turned Sookie's head to the side and pushed away her hair to expose her bare neck. He sank his fangs into her skin and sucked up her blood. She tasted so sweet, different than any other blood he ever had on his tongue. All this time he had known her, he had longed to taste her. Now, he would be her Maker. His mouth curled up into a small smile as he drained her of all her blood. Eric pulled back from her neck, sunk his own teeth into his wrist, opened her mouth and smeared his bleeding wound across her tongue. He kept his wrist in her mouth until it healed completely and bled no more.

Scooping her up in his arms, Eric took Sookie out to her backyard. He placed her down on the grass lightly and scanned her back porch for gardening tools. Spotting a large, dirty shovel, Eric ran to grab it and was back to Sookie's still body in no time. He stabbed the point of the shovel into the earth and dug up the dirt. Eric worked fast, not stopping until he was standing in a pit that sunk into the ground several feet.

Eric reached up for Sookie and placed her down in the dirt. He looked up at the pile and wondered curiously how he would bury them. When he didn't come up with any ideas, he focused and uttered, "Pam!"

He crossed his arms over his chest and waited for her to come, responding to his call. In under ten minutes, he heard the rustling of Pam moving quickly through the night. He saw Pam's bright pink stilettos right by the big pile of earth. "What took you so long?"

Pam pursed her glossy lips together. "I was in Shreveport," she explained to him dully. "Besides, I wasn't longer than a few minutes. You try running across part of the state in pumps." Pam peered into the pit that Eric was standing in and saw a beat up female body. She didn't have to ask him what he was doing; in fact, she was kind of excited. Pam marveled at the idea of a new vampire. "Who's that?"

Eric peered back over his shoulder and grinned. "Can't you tell? That's Sookie."

"What?" she said incredulously. Pam got up on her tip toes, trying to catch a glimpse at Sookie's face to see if it was really her. "How did you talk her into it?"

"She would have died had I not," Eric told her quickly. He wouldn't have minded telling her the story about how he finally got to taste Sookie Stackhouse, but they didn't have all night to chitchat. "I called you here to bury us."

Pam raised one of her perfectly manicured brows at him. Eric gave her a pointed look as if to say that his word was final. Eric laid down in the pit neck to Sookie's motionless body. "Ready," he called out of the ground to Pam.

Obeying orders, Pam grabbed the shovel, scooped up some dirt and tossed it on her Maker and his new vampire.

**. . .**

Eric woke when the sun had set. He quickly dug himself up from the earth and dusted the dirt off his clothing and out of his hair. Eric crossed his arms over his chest and waited for Sookie to rise up from the ground to her new life.

He heard a strange sound from below his feet and saw the dirt start to bubble up as Sookie clawed her way up and out of the pit. Mud was plastered to her now pale skin; so much had accumulated in her hair that she no longer looked blond. When she shook herself off, dirt fell freely from her body onto the grass. Eric assumed that Sookie would wake up hungry, like every new vampire does, but he was wrong.

Sookie was livid.

"Why was I in the ground, Eric?" she shouted at him as she ran her hands through her hair to remove more dirt.

"I put you there," Eric told her simply with a grin. He was fairly certain she didn't even know yet.

"Why did you try and kill me?" Sookie demanded.

"You're already dead, Sookie," he explained, trying not to laugh. Ever since he first laid eyes on Sookie, he concluded that she would make a great vampire. He desired to change her himself, to be her Maker. It delighted him to see Sookie in front of him with no beating heart nor no need to breathe, and knowing that he made her.

He did. Not Bill. Him.

"What are you saying, Eric?" Sookie asked him with a pained expression on her face. "What happened?"

Eric stuffed his hands in his pockets. "You were attacked last night," he started, wondering how much Sookie remembered, if anything. "By a werewolf. There were four of them. A wolf nearly killed you, and by the time I got to you, I either had to change you or let you die."

Sookie looked like she was about to cry. Eric really hoped she'd hold back her tears. "Why didn't you just let me die, then?"

He didn't think that she would be asking him this. "Because I couldn't just let you die."

"Well, I wish you had."

Eric rolled his eyes. He didn't understand Sookie; if faced with death or life as a vampire, why would anyone chose to die? "Well, there isn't much we can do now. What's done is done," he told her flatly. He pulled a small stainless steel knife from his pocket and slit his wrist. He held his bleeding arm out to Sookie. "You have to drink from me."

"Why?" Sookie asked, not moving an inch.

"You just have to," Eric said, stepping closer to her.

"Well, I'm not going to."

Eric wanted to shove his wrist into her mouth again, but he knew this time, she had to be willing or the transformation would not be complete. "If you don't drink from me then you will die and you will never be able to see your precious Bill again."

He could tell that Sookie was thinking over her options.

Finally, she grabbed Eric's arm and latched on to suck his blood. When he felt Sookie's cool lips against his skin, the suction of her mouth, and the blood leave his body and into hers, he sighed contently and twirled her dirty hair around one of his long fingers.

After a couple of minutes, he pulled his wrist from Sookie's mouth. He enjoyed seeing his blood dripping down Sookie's chin. "The transformation is complete," he informed her in a soft whisper. "We should probably go feed now."

Sookie wiped Eric's blood from her chin and licked it off her fingertips. "Feed?"

"Yes, I am sure you're hungry and you drank a lot of my blood, so I should feed as well."

Sookie flushed bright red. "So, we're going to go buy some Tru Bloods? The Grabbit Kwik sells some, or we can always go to Merlotte's." Sookie had to admit: she was hungry. She wanted to feel sad about being a vampire. She wanted to kill Eric for turning her. But the ache all over her body for blood distracted her from any other emotion right now.

"Um, no. I refuse to drink that, nor will you. At least, for now." Eric told her in a deadpan tone. "Let's go inside your house. You need to clean up before we feed. You're a mess."

"But I'm hungry," Sookie protested, following after Eric as if she was his loyal pup. "And you're dirty, too."

"Are you suggesting that I should join you in the shower?" Eric asked her with a wide grin. "Because that can be arranged."

"I am absolutely not suggesting that!" Sookie nearly shrieked at him before she quickly ran into the house and into the nearest bathroom. Before she shut the door, she heard Eric call out to her, "Make it quick, or I might have to come in after you."

**. . .**

"I am not going to feed on anyone from Bon Temps," Sookie informed him as they left her house. Her hair was clean and done up in a loose bun, makeup on to accentuate her lovely features, and she wore a tight white dress and heels.

She was going to regret wearing white, Eric thought. The first feed is always messy. "Don't worry. I wasn't planning on feeding on someone from this town."

"Then where are we going?" Sookie asked, no longer having to struggle as much to keep up with Eric.

"We're not _going_ anywhere. I have someone waiting for us."

"Who?" Sookie asked with wide eyes, either from curiosity or hunger. Perhaps both.

"I have no idea. Some guy. Certainly not one you know. He's from Arkansas," Eric explained to Sookie as he led her to the graveyard that was in between her house and Bill's.

Sookie noticed where they were headed. She felt a tight pain in her stomach that wasn't only from being hungry. "Where are you keeping him?"

"In Bill's house, of course. I had no where else to put him," Eric explained in his deep, soft voice. "I texted Pam while I was waiting for you to wake up to put him there for us. Pam glamored him, but he's also tied up just in case."

The two of them arrived at Bill's house and walked in. The house looked just as Sookie remembered it. She couldn't remember when she was last here with Bill; it seemed like ages ago. The last time Sookie was here – when she was still a human – Jessica was here.

Jessica.

"Is Jessica here?" Sookie asked hopefully. It would be nice to see a familiar face other than Eric's. She also wondered idly if Jessica would be excited to see that she was a vampire now.

Eric led her to the living room where a teenaged boy was. He looked nineteen, maybe twenty. "No, Jessica is not here. I asked Pam to take Jessica with her for a while. I wanted there to actually be a human with plenty of blood to feed off of by the time we got back."

Sookie nodded, but the smell of the human's blood blocked her mind from anything else. The blood smelled thick, sweet, and made her mouth water. She imagined the red blood on her tongue, filling her mouth and running down her throat to nourish her entire body. Sookie prepared to charge for the human's neck, but just as she was about to take off running, Eric held her back.

"You have to listen to me. You can't kill him."

"I don't want to kill him! I just want to taste him!" Sookie whined, trying to wiggle out of Eric's grip, but he was far too strong.

Eric held her in place firmly. "We have to do this the right way. You have to follow my lead," he explained to her. Sookie appeared to not like that idea. He could sense her intense greed. It excited him, but he had to focus. They both did. "Don't worry. I'll still give you first bite."

At Eric's promise, Sookie stopped struggling. Eric let go of her body, but kept close to her in case she lunged for the boy's neck.

He led her to the boy who was tied down to a chair in the middle of the living room. He was young, but not a child. He had light brown hair, and looked muscular. Eric noticed that he didn't look afraid or scared; he just looked bored. Eric was glad that Pam's glamor was sufficient enough. Eric turned back to Sookie and said, "He's still glamored. See the dazed sort of look in his eyes? You don't know how to glamor yet, and you're too young to learn, so just watch me."

Sookie nodded. Her short fangs were shining brightly.

Eric knelt down next to the boy and placed his hand on the boy's shoulder. "What's your name?" he asked in a soft, calm voice.

"Tommy."

"Tommy. That's a nice name. I'm Eric, and the pretty lady behind me is named Sookie. Isn't she pretty, Tommy?" Eric asked him slowly in the same melodic voice.

"Yes, she is."

"She likes you very much," Eric told Tommy, smiling. "Do you like her?"

"I do," Tommy said ardently with a nod.

"She very much wants to kiss your neck. She likes to kiss roughly, but it won't hurt. Won't you let her kiss your neck?"

Tommy's eyes looked at Sookie. His pupils were dilated. "Please kiss my neck," he asked her weakly.

Eric kept his influence over Tommy when he turned to look back at Sookie. "You may not kill him. I will tell you when you've fed enough and you must stop. Think of something you find repulsive to stop," he explained calmly. "If you can't, then I will make you stop. You must obey me when I tell you. Do you understand?" Sookie nodded. "Feed slowly, that way it will be easier for you to stop when you must." She nodded again. "You may feed now."

As Sookie approached Tommy slowly, Eric made sure to keep him glamored so he would not scream, and also to make Sookie's first feeding a positive experience. When he heard Sookie's new fangs sink into Tommy's neck, Eric's own fangs came out. He watched her closely to make sure that she was not swallowing the blood too quickly. She fed off Tommy for a couple of minutes, slowly sucking down the blood, until Eric finally announced, "Enough, Sookie. Stop now."

_Think of Andy Bellefleur naked. Think of Andy Bellefleur naked_, Sookie told herself.

She did not detach immediately. Instead, Sookie sucked once more on Tommy's neck, withdrew her fangs, and lapped at the blood on his neck.

When she pulled away from Tommy to face Eric, she flashed him a proud, red smile. The blood was running down her chin onto her chest and stained her white dress. "You got some blood on your dress."

"Aw, shoot!" Sookie swore.

"It's not a good idea to wear white just yet. Not for a couple more weeks," Eric told her before sinking his teeth into the opposite side of Tommy's bare neck.

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A/N: In this fic, Sookie doesn't know of Tommy yet – Sam's brother.


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: Thanks everyone for all of the great reviews! Bill is in this chapter (while he's still in Mississippi) and I put it his POV in _italics_. Enjoy!~

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_**Made**_** – Chapter 2**

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_Sookie was in pain. _

_There was so much blood._

_Werewolves showed up at her house. How the hell did they get there? How did they know where she lived? _Why _were they there? _

_Bill wanted to leave. He had to. He was all the way in Mississippi, but that didn't matter. Sookie needed him. She was so close to unconsciousness. It wouldn't be long until it was dead, and then Eric would drain her dry. The blood of a fresh corpse was irresistible... _

_He stood up quickly. His fangs were down. _

"_Just where do you think you're going, Mr. Compton?" The king of Mississippi asked curiously, encircling his strong hand around Bill's arm to hold him back. "I thought I told you to put those away." He pointed at Bill's white fangs. _

_A great fury arose in Bill; he had no qualms with killing every last vampire here to get to Sookie, but it was incontrovertible that he would not be successful. These vampires were far too old and powerful. "Sook—I saw—nothing," Bill muttered. The less the king knew about Sookie's current situation, the better. _

_The wolf attacking Sookie was biting at her neck savagely. Her blood – _his _blood_ _– was on the wolf's sharp yellow teeth and down its throat. Where was Eric? Why wasn't he killing the werewolf that is killing Sookie? She was going to die. _

"_Bill, what _is _the matter?" The king inquired exasperatedly. _

"_Do you require more food?" Talbot asked._

_Sookie blacked out. There was nothing except for a slow heart beat. Dangerously slow. _

_Then something pierced Sookie's skin. Two small wounds from something sharp and familiar. Her veins were being drained of all their blood._

_Eric Northman was a dead man._

_Sookie was—_

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After giving he boy a small amount of his own blood, he removed Tommy's restraints and the glamor that he had over him. "Run along now, little boy." Eric made him forget that Tommy why he was here, that he even knew their faces, and without a second thought, the confused teenager stumbled out of the house.

"Do you think Bill is going to call?" Sookie asked finally. It was the first time she mentioned Bill to Eric since he turned her. She ached to hear Bill's voice again, feel his gentle touch on her face, and his strong arms around her waist. Where was he? Certainly he'd be showing up soon, right? He had to know she was in trouble, he had to have sensed how close she was to death...

Eric did not answer immediately. "I am not sure," he said flatly. "But I do – _believe _– that I know where Bill is."

Sookie felt a surge of insurmountable joy. If she still had a working heart, it would have skipped a beat. "What? Why didn't you say anything? Where is he?"

"I didn't say anything because you never asked," he told her simply, answering her first question. "And the werewolves all had the same markings that the other werewolves had – the ones you found dead in Bill's car. They also had an accent."

"Where from?" Sookie asked excitedly.

"Mississippi. Jackson, to be specific."

"Let's go." Sookie shot up.

Eric snorted and grabbed Sookie's arm before she made it to the door. "We can't just go to Jackson."

Sookie didn't take one more step toward the door, but she did look upset. "Why not?"

Eric wasn't quite sure _how_ to tell Sookie why they couldn't just _go_ to Jackson, Mississippi without telling her too much. Yes, she was a vampire now, but she was still so young and connected to the human world. If Eric was right in his assumptions about who was behind Bill's kidnapping, then they would have to be extremely careful about how they would get into Mississippi – assuming they'd actually be able to go in the first place. "Uh, it's _difficult_ for vampires to move from one state to another," Eric lied, hoping that would suffice.

Sookie looked upset and desperate. "We can still go though, right? Eventually?"

"Hopefully," Eric said thoughtfully.

Sookie was quiet for several moments until she bolted towards the door, announcing, "I have to go to work!"

Eric's brows were arched and there was a small smile on his red lips. "Uh, no you don't."

"Uh, yes, I do. I am probably already late!" Sookie grasped the door handle.

Eric swatted her hand away. "It doesn't matter if you're late, Sookie. You can't work there anymore." His fangs weren't out, but his tone was final.

Sookie didn't get the hint, of course. "Why not?"

"Because," Eric started calmly. "You're a vampire now. A baby vampire, too, nonetheless. What do you think will happen if you are around a crowd of people and you can smell their blood?" Sookie looked confused, perhaps considering if she could actually smell the blood of every patron at Merlotte's. Eric knew she'd be able to. "You'll want their blood. You'll bite them and you won't be able to stop. Not when there is that much blood; not when you're so young."

She had a blank look on her face for several moments, then her lips pulled into a smile. "That's crazy talk! They're my friends. I won't want to feed off them!"

Eric was not as convinced as Sookie was. He knew better. He also knew that Sookie would not take no for an answer; maybe stopping by Merlotte's would prove to her that this was a world she was not ready for. Not yet. She needed a couple more weeks to get used to her new undead life.

He could not deny her. "We'll go by tomorrow evening after you've fed. You can call in and say you're sick for today." He looked over Sookie's considerably paler skin. "I daresay they'd believe you."

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Her belly was full of blood and she was dressed in her Merlotte's uniform. "I'm ready to go," Sookie announced, grabbing her small purse. "Shall we take your car or mine?"

Eric looked out the window at Sookie's pathetic yellow vehicle. "Uh, we will be taking my car."

It wasn't a long drive until they arrived at Merlotte's. The restaurant was already packed full of Bon Temps residents that came looking for a drink and a burger after work.

Sookie's nose erupted with a glorious scent. Her eyes closed lightly and she had a sweet look on her face. "What's that smell?"

Eric smirked. "The blood of humans. Perhaps thirty of them, or more."

If Sookie was still alive, she probably would have flushed a rosy pink. Her mind went hazy; she had just ate, but at the mere smell of so much blood, her mouth watered for its taste again. Sookie swallowed thickly. "Ready to go in?"

"Are you sure you want to do this?" Eric asked softly. Had Sookie not had keener senses now, she probably wouldn't have heard him, even if she did have a good amount of vampire blood in her when she was a human.

"This is my job, and those are my friends in there. I'll just have to keep that in mind."

"The smell will be stronger once we're inside."

Sookie nodded weakly and got out of Eric's car. Eric followed closely after her.

When Sookie opened the door, she was completely overwhelmed with the smell of the patrons at Merlotte's; their blood smelled delicious and thick. Their thoughts did not even flood her mind, because all she could think of was the sweet red fluid that ran through their veins.

"Sookie!" Arlene said excitedly, bouncing over to them with a tray under her arm. "Oh, Sookie! Are you still sick? You look pale as a ghost!" She placed a hand on Sookie's cheek. "And you're cold as ice!"

When Arlene touched her, Sookie could almost taste her blood on her tongue. "Um, yeah, Arlene. I'm not really feeling... like myself."

"Aw, darling! Well, I'm glad you're here! We've been so busy!" Arlene hurried back to her tables.

"That wasn't so bad," Sookie whispered to Eric.

"That was nothing," Eric told her pointedly as he followed her to the backroom.

Sookie turned and gave Eric a curious look. "What are you doing?"

"I am going to have to follow you around tonight," Eric said as he pulled his black knit shirt over his head and grabbed a white t-shirt with Merlotte's logo printed on the front. "To make sure that you don't kill someone accidentally." Eric pulled the shirt over his head and tucked it into his tight black pants. "You could say that I am a new waiter here and that you're training me." Eric laughed lightly. Sookie, his trainer, when he was the one who was actually training _her_ about how to be a vampire.

"Oh, well, I guess that could work." Eric wouldn't have taken no for an answer, anyway.

The two of them walked from the backroom together and into the restaurant. Sookie had to admit that Eric looked pretty silly in a Merlotte's uniform; they never had a male waiter. The shirt was absurdly strained across his broad chest.

"Might want to stop thinking about my chest and get your mind on how to not kill everyone here," Eric told her with a grin.

Sookie narrowed her eyes at her Maker.

When she approached her new table of four, she was overwhelmed with their smell. Her mouth was wet with anticipation and her eyes drifted lazily in their sockets. Her fangs came down with a small click and she stepped closer to the confused looking son.

Eric grabbed her arm to pull her back. "Sookie, you need to focus," he told her softly. She nodded and tried not to think of how exquisite their blood smelled. After much effort, her fangs retracted. "Welcome to Merlotte's, y'all. This here is Eric," Sookie placed her arm on his as she introduced him. "He's training to be a waiter, so he's going to be following me around tonight. Do y'all know what you want for dinner?"

After Sookie finished writing down their order, the two of them walked back to the kitchen. Sookie handed the slip of paper to Terry, who smelled thick, strong, and manly. She could see the veins in his arms, neck, and temples of his forehead pulsing. Sookie wanted to run her tongue over him and penetrate his skin with her fangs.

"Hey, Sook!" Lafayette called from behind her. "Damn, you musta been real sick, honeycomb. You lost that pretty tan." He smelled good, too. Different than Terry, less manly and warlike, but more smooth and sweet. Sookie imagined his blood running down her throat like hot chocolate on a cold winter night; soothing and satisfying.

"Hi, Lafayette," she finally manged.

Eric could sense that she was losing her control. "Let's get back to those tables, Sookie."

Lafayette hadn't noticed that Eric was there until he spoke. He backed up slowly and had a panicked look on his face, but he didn't cower in fear. "Is you really working here now?"

"Just for tonight," Eric said reassuringly. Lafayette breathed a sigh of relief and started chopping up a head of lettuce. "Come on, Sookie." Eric led the way to the backroom. Once he closed the door behind them, he turned to face Sookie. "We should leave."

"I didn't bite anyone!" Sookie protested.

Eric sighed. She didn't bite anyone _yet_. "Yeah, but your fangs have come down twice already and we've only been here a few minutes."

"No, only once with that table of four!"

"They're down now." Eric said, looking at her new fangs.

Sookie brought her cold hand up to her mouth and pressed her fingertips against her teeth. "I didn't even realize that they were," she explained as her fangs retracted.

"Because you were too focused on Terry and Lafayette's blood," Eric explained, pulling the Merlotte's shirt up off his body. "Grab your purse. We have to go."

"What are you doing here?" Sam was standing in the doorway of the backroom, glaring at Eric with his brows furrowed. Sookie turned around to face Sam. His eyes fell on her – he noticed that the skin around her eyes looked raw and her complexion was considerably paler. Sam's face turned deep red with anger. "What the _fuck _did you do to her?" Sam tried to shove Eric forcibly up against the wall, but Eric didn't go very far.

Eric's fangs came down. Sookie's were already out. "I saved her life," he said thickly.

"You killed her!" Sam spat, attempting to punch Eric, but he was too fast. What Sam punched instead tore skin off his knuckles. His hand was bleeding freely.

His blood was fresh and savory; Sookie had yet to smell anyone sweeter. She did not linger on his scent, but instead she tossed her body quickly in Sam's direction. Her mouth was open, and her fangs were ready to pierce Sam's skin.

A strong arm, far stronger than her, pushed her back against the furthest wall. "Sookie, leave. Now." Eric ordered, and Sookie felt a bind tighten around her. She couldn't move any closer to Sam, at least not without causing herself tremendous pain from disobeying her Maker. Sookie did not even look at Sam's frightened face before she ran out of the room and then out of Merlotte's – possibly for good.

Eric was right; she couldn't work here anymore.

* * *

"Can we pick up some Tru Bloods?" Sookie asked. The two of them were speeding away from Merlotte's in Eric's car. Not being able to feed off so many humans left Sookie feeling terribly unsatisfied.

Eric glanced at Sookie with a mild look of disgust. "Why would we do that when we can find a human for you to feed from?"

Sookie sighed heavily. Admittedly, she ached for fresh human blood, but nearly attacking Sam – her boss and friend – put her off the idea of the idea of feeding on a human for at least tonight. That young boy she fed on yesterday was someone's son – maybe someone's brother. "After what happened at Merlotte's, I don't feel up to feeding off a human. Besides, you let Tommy go."

"He can be easily found," he told Sookie smoothly.

Her mind flooded with temptation to taste Tommy's blood again. Sookie could almost taste him in her mouth. Finally, coming out of her trance, she shook her head weakly.

Eric pulled over to the side of the road. "Sookie." Her name was a caress on his lips. "I know you didn't want this, but being a vampire is your reality now. Mainstreaming is not exactly a life that I have chosen for myself, and as your Maker, it's not a life I would have chosen for you." He placed his cold hand on Sookie's porcelain thigh and squeezed gently. "I know you're having a hard time adjusting. Feeding off humans doesn't make you a monster; it keeps you alive. No one's asking you to become a murderer. I'll make sure you don't, anyway." He finished with a wink.

Sookie smiled. It had never occurred to her how good of a Maker Eric could be; that he'd take care of her, teach her, and keep her. She thought she would only get that with Bill.

And just as she thought of Bill, her phone rang –

Bill's name was flashing on the small screen.

Sookie was out of the car quickly, flipped her phone open, and pressed it to her ear. "Bill?"

"Sookie." His voice was low and flat.

It made her ache with despair that she was so excited to finally hear his voice while he sounded like she was the last person that he wanted to talk to. "Uh – are you – are you okay? Where are you?"

Bill didn't answer her questions. "What happened the other night?"

Sookie didn't have to ask what night Bill was speaking of. "Some werewolves came to my house and attacked Eric and me."

"Then what happened?" Sookie could hear – could almost _feel_ – the anger in Bill's voice at the mere mention of Eric's name.

"Well, I almost died." Her temper was rising. Why wasn't he saying that he loved her, or that he missed her, or that he'd be back soon?

"And that's when you let Eric turn you?"

Sookie exploded. "I didn't _let_ Eric turn me! I blacked out! I would have _died_ had he not. Would you prefer_ that_ than me be like you?"

"You know how I feel about Eric. And now, he's your _Maker."_

"Yeah, well if you were actually here to _protect _me, then maybe my Maker could have been you!" Angry tears of blood escaped Sookie's eyes, staining her cheeks a deep red.

After a long pause, Bill finally said, "I have to go."

"When will I hear from you again?" Sookie pleaded, hating how her voice quivered from the knot in the back of her throat.

Another long pause. "You won't. You are no longer of concern to me."

Then there was nothing; he hung up.

Sookie did not immediately remove the phone from her ear; she could not believe the conversation they just shared, the things Bill said. She stared out into the empty field on the side of the road, wondering how she could lose the only man she ever loved so easily, and how he could bare to say such things to her after just _proposing_ to her a couple of days earlier. The crisp night air licked her cheeks, and she wiped away her bloody tears hastily.

She opened the door of Eric's red corvette and flung herself into the passenger's seat. "Nevermind about that Tru Blood, Eric. I want _real _food."

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A/N: I really loved what Bill said in the preview of the new episode (the whole "you are no longer of concern to me") so I had to use it. Totally not my line!


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N:** I know in season 2, Eric talks about there being coffins at Fangtasia for him, Pam, Chow and Bill to sleep in after Sookie got attacked by Maryann. Yeah... I don't think that's glamorous enough for Eric. In this chapter, the three of them share a house close to Fangtasia.

Thanks for all the feedback! Enjoy!~

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_**Made – Chapter 3**_

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The parking lot they pulled into was empty, save for one car. The tall trees swayed in time with the soft breeze and the wind howled against the leaves. There was a small walkway that separated the trees and led further into the park, where hopefully the owners of the car would be waiting for them.

Eric led the way through the lush park until they got to a small clearing with a playground, a swing set, and a couple of worn out picnic benches. Sookie was certain that despite there being a car in the lot, that the park was actually abandoned – until she saw a couple.

The couple were both seated on the same swing; the teenaged boy was sitting on the swing, and the girl was straddling him at the waist. They were facing each other, the girl was unbuttoning her boyfriend's shirt and was shoving her tongue in his mouth.

"Them?" Sookie asked quietly so that the young lovers could not hear her.

Eric nodded. "They're virgins."

Sookie peered over at the couple again. The girl ran her tongue down the boy's neck, whose mouth was open and releasing soft moans. Sookie raised her brows. "They sure don't look like they are virgins," she said incredulously.

Eric laughed lightly. "They might not look it, but they _smell_ it."

Sookie inhaled their scent; their blood smelled sweeter than most humans and unmistakeably innocent. Her mind erupted with their shared uncertainty of their actions – was her kissing sufficient, should he let her lips travel further down, should she unbutton his pants, should he _let _her unbutton his pants, should they wait for another time, were they going to get caught? "They smell..."

"Appetizing?" Eric supplied, and Sookie nodded weakly.

They approached the couple; they still did not realize that they were being watched. Eric cleared his throat and they immediately broke apart. The boy hastily buttoned his shirt back up and the girl removed herself from his lap and fixed her tousled hair. They both looked anxious and uneasy. "Hi, sir," the boy blurted out hoarsely, flushing at the sound of his voice. "Are you guys cops, or something?"

Eric glanced quickly at Sookie; he had a small, devilish grin on his lips. "We are not cops."

The girl's face went from worried to angry in the matter of a second. "Then why are y'all watching us?"

Sookie wanted to slap her; as if their midnight rendezvous were of any interest to her. But before she could comment on the girl's question, Eric began to glamor her. The girl's face went blank and her pupils dilated. "What is your name?"

"Don't tell him!" the boy pleaded.

"Alyssa."

"Good, Alyssa. Is that your boyfriend?"

Alyssa did not even glance at the boy who was with her. "Yes."

"What's his name?"

The boy glared at Eric and tried to yank his girlfriend away in the direction of their car, but she did not budge. "His name is Kevin."

"Alyssa, what the hell is wrong with you?" Kevin begged. He looked near tears. "What did you do to her?"

Eric did not answer him, but leaned down so that he could whisper in Sookie's ear, "Would you like to try and glamor him?

Sookie looked apprehensive. "Aren't I a little young to glamor a human?"

"Glamoring is about pulling a human's mind into yours, and you already do that, in a way," Eric explained quickly. "I'll show you how."

After considering Eric's offer, Sookie nodded.

Eric placed his hand on Sookie's lower back and guided her to stand closer to Kevin. "Look into his eyes," Eric instructed, and Sookie caught Kevin's gaze. His eyes were a beautiful hazel. "Let your mind go blank." Sookie dropped all of the barriers that she set to keep out human thoughts, and before Eric told her, "Now draw his mind into yours," Sookie already had possession over scared, pathetic Kevin. His eyes that were squinted in fear eased considerably and his pupils grew wide as if he were in a deep trance. "Very good, Sookie. Now tell him there's no reason to be afraid."

Sookie did not break her gaze with boy. "There's nothing to be afraid of, Kevin." He nodded lazily without blinking.

"And that he's not in trouble," Eric added.

"Don't worry," Sookie placed her cold hand gently on Kevin's shoulder. "You aren't in any trouble."

Kevin's face broke into a wide grin and he nodded happily. "That's good news!"

"Tell him that you noticed there's a kink in his neck," Eric whispered to Sookie, who looked confused. "And that you will help him feel better." He gave her a pointed look and she understood.

Sookie placed a hand on the base of Kevin's neck. "Does your neck hurt, darling?"

Kevin's mouth opened slightly. "Actually, it does." He placed his hand on Sookie's and rubbed his neck with her hand.

"I can help you feel better," Sookie said in a dreamy tone, grabbing Kevin's hand in hers as she brought it down to his side. "Would you like that?"

"Very much." Kevin was dazed to oblivion.

"Good job, Sookie," Eric said approvingly. He was proud of his newest child.

Sookie smiled at her maker before releasing her fangs and sinking them into Kevin's young, taut skin. He sucked in his breath when she pierced his skin, but otherwise did not seem to be in any pain. He stood still, marveling at how his neck was feeling better already, and he brought his hand up to gently stroke Sookie's blonde hair.

Eric had Alyssa believing that he was giving her a hickey that she deeply desired. As he fed from her neck, Alyssa's tongue slithered from her mouth, lashing in the night air as she tried to get a taste of Eric's beautiful, luminous skin.

* * *

Sookie's skin looked sunburned from their feed; Eric's skin was flushed a dull pink. "What did you tell Kevin before we left?" Eric asked finally. He saw Sookie glamor Kevin a little more than what was necessary.

"Oh, um... I told Kevin to wait to have sex with Alyssa," Sookie said quietly as she fidgeted in her seat.

Eric laughed. "Why would you do that?" He didn't understand why anyone would wait to have sex, or why Sookie planted that thought in his mind.

"Because I read her mind, and she's fixing on leaving Kevin for someone on the football team," she told Eric. Sookie was far more hesitant on who she bedded than Eric was, seeing as she only slept with one man in her life. First times were meant to be special with someone who loved you, not with someone who was going to leave you for someone else.

"Well, they could have had a little bit of fun before she called it quits," Eric said with a wink. He pulled into Sookie's driveway. Her house looked dark and inviting; the same way they left it.

Sookie opened the passenger's side door to get out of the car, but was stopped when Eric reached over her and slammed the door shut. He pressed a small button on the side of his door and locked them inside the car. Sookie looked at him with wide eyes. "What's wrong?"

"There are werewolves in your house again. I could smell them when you opened the door," Eric whispered. His fangs were out and his eyes were blazing. "You can't stay here," Eric told her, shifting the gear of his Corvette to reverse.

"What? Where the heck am I going to stay, then?" Sookie asked, looking at her house. It looked so welcoming and full of love. She hated that she had so many intruders as of late. It was _her _house; how dare some werewolf enter without her consent! Sookie vehemently wished that werewolves had the same rules about entering houses that vampires did.

Eric pulled out of her driveway and back onto the road. "You'll stay with me in Shreveport. Bon Temps is no longer safe for you; not for a while, at least."

Sookie processed what Eric said, and immediately got angry. "What? But I _live_ here. My _life_ is here!"

"Not anymore." Eric didn't like that he was upsetting her, but he'd rather her be upset than hurt. She might technically be dead now, but her life was still delicate.

"What about my _job_?" Sookie demanded. She didn't try and get out of the car, but she certainly wanted to. "Where am I going to work?"

Eric considered her question and then said, "You can work at Fangtasia as a dancer."

Sookie's jaw dropped. She knew how to dance, but she didn't do it often, especially not the kind of dancing that took place at Fangtasia. "What about my clothes?"

"We'll go shopping tomorrow night," Eric said simply. "Pam can come with us if you like. You can borrow some of her clothes until we go." Eric was fairly certain that Pam would _enjoy _sharing clothes with Sookie; maybe a little too much. He'd have to remind her to share her more conservative clothing.

"My car?" Sookie asked helplessly.

"I'll buy you a new one," Eric said, keeping his eyes on the road. "Lord knows you need one."

Sookie was out of excuses about why they should go back to her house. She sat back in her seat and folded her arms stubbornly over her chest. She thought of her house, all her belongings, her friends and co-workers at Merlotte's, and her little yellow car. Sookie felt a deep twinge of sadness as they sped towards Shreveport.

* * *

It was two hours till dawn when they arrived at Fangtasia. Pam and Chow were waiting for Eric near the entrance. The rest of the bar was locked up and ready for business to start the next night.

"Oh, isn't her new skin lovely?" Pam asked sweetly, running the back of her hand against Sookie's cold cheek. Sookie drew back slightly and Pam smiled. "I guess this makes us sisters now." Her lips were plump and glossy. Pam had already changed out of her costume she wore during business hours and was currently dressed in a flattering floral dress.

Sookie hadn't thought about the fact that both her and Pam were made by Eric, and what that meant for their relationship. She wondered if they could be friends. "I guess so."

Pam glanced over to Eric. "Will you actually be able to get her back to Bon Temps before dawn?"

Eric looked at her and Chow. His expression told them that what he was going to say was how it was going to be. "Sookie is going to be staying with us for a while," he told them. "There were more werewolves at her house tonight."

"What if they come looking for her here?" Chow asked. Somehow, he didn't sound like he minded if they came after Sookie, Eric, Pam, or ruined the bar. He only seemed interested in his own safety.

"They won't," Eric said confidently. "No one knows that Sookie left her home for Shreveport." Eric narrowed his eyes at Chow as if to dare him to argue further. Chow could be easily replaced. "Do you have any more questions?"

Chow shook his head. Pam looked utterly excited. "Let's go, then," Eric said.

Sookie expected to get back in Eric's car and to drive to their place, but they didn't. Eric, Pam, and Chow braced themselves to run and shot off. They ran slow enough so that they would not leave Sookie in the dust, but she still held up the rear.

In less than a minute, they were standing outside of what must have been the house that Eric, Pam, and Chow shared. The house looked extremely small; it was only one story and the exterior of the house seemed large enough for just one room. They had a lot of land around their house, and Sookie wondered if they, too, ever had to spend nights sleeping in the dirt.

Sookie was right about the first floor of the house only having one room – a kitchen. The kitchen was incredibly simple: it was complete with only a round table with six chairs, a stainless steel refrigerator that likely held Tru Blood, and a matching microwave.

There was also a steel, light-tight door which lead down to the rest of the house.

Their house was just as lavish as Fangtasia, but didn't resemble a nightclub quite as much. Contemporary furniture was placed around a large, flat screen television in the sitting room. There was a more impressive kitchen with a bar – likely for entertaining humans. There was a separate room with a long table, twelve chairs, a mini refrigerator, and a microwave; ideal for conferences. Sookie spotted an indoor hot tub, a pool table, and a couple of stripper poles. Clearly Fangtasia's business wasn't suffering.

"Pam, please let Sookie borrow some of your clothes for the morning and for tomorrow night," Eric said as he pulled out some bottles of blood and placed them in the microwave.

"Let's go, sugar," Pam said as she led Sookie back to her room. "I think you'll be staying in the room next to me." All of the bedroom doors were made out of the same light-tight steel as the door down into the home, just in case that door was opened during the day.

Pam's room was very clean and girly. The walls were painted the palest pink, she had a white chest of drawers, armoire, nightstand, and full-length mirror. Her four-poster bed was covered with a delicate floral quilt. Her walk-in closet was bursting with clothes. "I do hope you didn't expect I slept in a coffin every day," Pam said sweetly when she saw Sookie's expression. "What would you like to borrow for the morning?"

"A robe and a nightgown will work," Sookie said with a smile.

Pam pulled out a light pink robe and a cotton nightgown from her armoire and handed them to Sookie who stood still with the clothes held in her arms. "Are you going to get undressed or do you want me to do it for you?" Pam asked with a wide grin.

"Um, I'll undress myself." Sookie's voice was high and her eyes were wide. She laid the clothes Pam gave her on her bed and quickly discarded her clothes and bra. She slipped the white nightgown over her pale skin. It was very short; it only came down to her mid-thigh. Sookie pulled the robe – which was not much longer – over the nightgown and tied it at her waist. Never before had she worn a silk robe; it felt so smooth and light on her skin.

"There!" Pam said excitedly, flattening the folds of the robe with her cool palms. "What would you like for tomorrow night?"

"Do you have any jeans?" Sookie asked. Pam never seemed like a blue jeans kind of girl. She always wore nice trousers or skirts.

Pam escaped to the back of her closet, dug around, and emerged with a single pair of blue jeans that appeared to have never been worn. "I have them for emergencies," Pam explained, handing the jeans over to Sookie. "And on top?"

"Just a simple shirt will be fine," Sookie said.

Pam pulled out a drawer and passed a fitted white shirt to Sookie. "Do you need anything else?" Pam's smile was wide. She was positively tickled that Sookie would be living with them. Being the only woman of the house with Eric and Chow was getting a little old.

Sookie began to shake her head, but then her mind erupted with all kinds of questions for Pam. "Do you like being a vampire, Pam?"

She laughed lightly at Sookie's question. What a silly thing to ask. "Of course. What's not to like?"

Sookie could think of numerous things she didn't particularly _like _about her new life: drinking blood, having to obey Eric no matter what, the possibility of killing someone _so _easily always present in the back of her mind... it wasn't exactly her ideal. "What about when you were changed?" Sookie asked softly, hoping that it was not a delicate subject with Pam. "Did you feel the same in the beginning?"

Pam's face fell slightly. She walked over to her bed, sat on the edge, and invited Sookie to sit with her. Pam didn't speak right away. She arched her neck and listened, making sure that Eric and Chow weren't eavesdropping. When she was certain neither of them were lurking around in the hallway, she said, "I was turned a little over a hundred years ago. Eric and I met one night. He was really upset; said that he was going through a breakup of sorts, and didn't know when he was going to see his friend again." Sookie wondered who that friend was, and if it might have been Godric. She remembered when Eric told her he hadn't seen Godric for many decades before they were together again in the basement of the church. "We seemed to really hit it off, and I asked if he wanted to come home with me," Pam continued, not looking at all bashful about the change in subject. "It was the best sex I ever had. Well, up until that point at least."

Sookie gave Pam a small smile. Pam was reminiscing about her night with Eric with a dazed sort of expression. "Eric bit me, of course, and maybe it was because he was so sad, but he nearly drained me. He didn't mean to; I remember him being upset with himself, so he made me to atone for almost killing me." Pam curled her blonde hair behind her ear. She looked up at Sookie. "At first, I didn't mind being a vampire. It was nice, different, exhilarating – and spending every night with Eric never got dull. But then I killed some humans accidentally. Back then, it wasn't uncommon for young vampires to mistakenly _over-suck _the blood out of a human. I felt like a monster," Pam ended in a flat tone.

"Eric didn't watch over you to make sure you didn't kill anyone?" Sookie asked incredulously. While she hadn't been a vampire very long, she hadn't fed without Eric yet.

Pam laughed and was smiling again. "Eric wanted me to learn how to hunt on my own in the beginning. There was no synthetic blood back then, so it was imperative that I learn how to feed on my own very quickly in case Eric couldn't be with me one night, otherwise I'd starve. I only killed a couple of humans then, and it was always when I was alone. I didn't tell Eric at first because I was so embarrassed, but he must have known anyway." Pam fussed with her clothes and the bangles on her slim wrist before she addressed Sookie again. "Do you not like being a vampire yet?"

Did she like it? Her life these past couple of days seemed like a whirlwind. She didn't have time to stop and get used to all the changes she was going through. It was so overwhelming. "I guess I am just not used to being a vampire yet," Sookie admitted. "It feels like I am not living my own life."

There was a small smile on Pam's lips. "It'll get better," she said reassuringly, and Sookie hoped she was right.

Eric was suddenly standing in Pam's doorway. Sookie didn't even hear him walk up the hall. He was leaning against the door frame casually with his hands in his pockets. His azure eyes were all over Sookie. "I see that you were able to borrow some of Pam's clothes."

Sookie shot up from the bed, clutching the jeans and shirt to her chest. Eric eyes ran up and down her frame again, resting where the robe brushed her thighs. His smile made Sookie blush. She gave Eric a small nod.

"I want to show you where you will be sleeping," Eric requested. It was about an hour till dawn and Sookie needed to rest. "Ready?"

"Yeah, sure," Sookie answered. She thanked Pam for allowing her to borrow some of her clothes before following Eric to her sleeping quarters.

Eric led her into what was now her bedroom. The furniture and sheets were very simple and impersonal; it was obvious that the room was used for guests. The comforter that adorned the bed was an appalling green, blue, and yellow plaid. The closet was roomy and completely bare. Sookie felt so far away from home; like she was sleeping in a less than ideal hotel room.

"I can get you some new bedroom things after you're settled in if you'd like," Eric said when he saw that Sookie's face had fallen at the sight of the room.

Sookie flashed Eric a fake smile. She was grateful for being out of danger, but she missed her home, her job, her brother, her friends... her boyfriend. "It's fine, Eric. Thanks so much." She wished she snap out of her melancholy.

Eric's cool, light touch running up and down her sides was enough to do the trick.

The clothes that Sookie clutched in her hands dropped lamely to the floor in a bundle. She gazed up into Eric's face; his eyes were dark with lust – a feeling he had so strongly for her that Sookie could feel his need through their bond. Sookie sucked in breath that she no longer needed when Eric's palm cupped her cheek. His lips were so close to hers. She could smell the sweet scent of blood on his tongue. Eric ached to press his lips against hers.

But he kissed her cheek instead. "See you tomorrow night."

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**I am having difficulty coming up with a name for the store that Sookie gets her dancer clothes from. Any suggestions? :3 If I use your suggestion, I will be sure to credit you in the author's notes! 3**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Thanks for all of the feedback, especially from GaijinVamp, Rena Howard, Bullock, sj61, and wizardswriter who all gave me suggestions for a store name! I love all the suggestions. It was so hard picking – I wish I could have used them all, but it would have been the longest name in history!**

**In the end, I decided to go with GaijinVamp's "Tightrope." Something about that name...I just loved it instantly, and it goes with the type of clothes I imagine the store selling. Thanks GaijinVamp!  
**

**Also thanks to Rena Howard! I loved the name Raquelle that was in your suggestion, so I gave the store owner that name. **

**I considered bumping this up to M, but in the end, I kept it T. I guess you all can guess what's coming, though!**

**Enjoy!~**

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_**Made – **_**Chapter 4**

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"I can't wait to see you in that pretty turquoise sundress," Pam announced as they sped towards their next destination. She was sitting next to Sookie in the back of a luxurious SUV that Eric was driving for the night, and shifting through Sookie's many bags of clothes. "It'll look so nice against your new skin."

"It'd look better against a nice tan," Sookie responded with a half-smile. She still felt a little uncomfortable about Eric buying her all this new stuff; no one had ever laid down so much money for her, especially for clothes. Sookie just hoped that Eric didn't expect her to model the clothes for him in private. While he would like seeing the clothes on her, she knew that he would eventually rather see them on the floor. "So, where are we going now?"

Pam's bright pink lips pulled into a wide smile. "Oh, just this nice place called Tightrope." Eric released a soft laugh.

Sookie glanced up at the rear-view mirror to see if she could catch the look in Eric's eyes, but to no avail. "Tightrope? What kind of clothes do they sell?"

"Uh, _tight _clothes," Pam said as she tucked Sookie's clothes back into their bags. "It's the store that all of the dancers at Fangtasia go to for their costumes. Some female vampires run it; the owner is particularly _feisty_. They make most of the clothes themselves. They give us a nice discount for being loyal customers."

She remembered the way Pam looked when she was in her lavish costumes; her leather dresses were skintight and pulled over her curves provocatively. Sookie blushed when she imagined what she'd look like in outfits like that, and what her Gran would say about it had she still been alive. "Do I have to wear mostly black like the rest of you?"

Pam laughed lightly, but didn't answer Sookie's question. Instead, Eric did, "Our dancers mainly wear black, red, and sometimes silver. If you find something else in a different color that you like, we will consider buying it, but it has to look really, _really _good on you."

"And that shouldn't be too hard," Pam said as she tucked Sookie's blonde hair behind her ear.

They engaged in meddlesome chatter until they arrived at what must have been Tightrope. The store was illuminated with several neon pink lights that displayed the store's name brightly and framed the wide windows that housed a couple of plastic models that showed off some of Tightrope's sexiest outfits. There were only a few cars parked outside of the store, and for that, Sookie was grateful.

Eric and Pam led her into the store and up to the crystal counter where the cash registers were placed. Behind one was a gorgeous vampire; she was tall and curvy with thick brown hair that fell down her back in loose ringlets. Her eyes were a beautiful emerald green, and her skin had a light tan that Sookie guessed was much darker when she was still alive. She was dressed in what must have been one of her own designs: her halter top showed more than it covered, it was black with a wide heart cutout outlined in red that showed off her cleavage and her black pants were impossibly tight and artfully cut up the sides. There was nothing left to the imagination. She didn't smile when she saw Sookie; she didn't even look at her. She only addressed Eric and Pam. "Welcome back to Tightrope, and what a pleasure it is to see you two again. What brings you into Tightrope?"

"Good evening, Raquelle." Eric smiled at the woman as he lightly rested his hand on the small of Sookie's back and guided her up to the crystal counter. "This is my youngest child and my newest dancer, Sookie, and she is in need of some of your finest costumes."

Her gaze fell upon Sookie. Raquelle's eyes narrowed slightly as she scanned over Sookie's entire body, noting the swell of her breasts, the litheness of her waist, and the curves of her hips. She glanced back up at Eric with a small, devilish grin. "All of my clothes are fine." Raquelle stepped out from behind the counter and led them to a lavish plum colored couch that was placed in front of a series of dressing rooms. "Please make yourselves comfortable while I show Miss Sookie to some outfits I have picked out for her."

Pam delicately sat down on the couch and crossed her legs. Eric, on the other hand, did not. "I would like to accompany her."

Raquelle raised her brows, but did not argue against Eric's request. She directed them to the opposite side of the store where decorative hanging jewels beckoned them into a small, opulent room. There were only a few outfits showcased, and they all looked like they cost a fortune. Sookie thought they looked like haute couture stripper clothes, if such thing existed. "These are the outfits I have put aside for Sookie based off the information you gave me about her last night."

Eric studied the outfits with narrow eyes. "There's no black or red." All of the outfits were beautiful soft pastels.

"You said she was innocent and sweet," Raquelle said defensively. "Blacks and reds don't say innocent and sweet."

Sookie's mouth opened slightly at what Raquelle said, and looked up at Eric who was making an effort not to react to what the store owner had said. "Our dancers don't wear pastels."

"Your dancers aren't sweet and innocent, neither, but she is."

Eric's lips were a thin line. "She'll try them all on while you find her some more outfits that are more appropriate for Fangtasia."

Raquelle glared at Eric, but removed the five outfits she had displayed and took them back to Sookie's dressing room. Eric followed her, albeit not so closely behind, and Sookie followed Eric. "So, you think I'm innocent and sweet?" Sookie asked as she laid her small hand on Eric's arm.

Eric huffed. "You're innocent, at least."

"Like you would know," Sookie said sarcastically.

Eric turned to face her and ran his hand through Sookie's soft blonde hair. "Oh, but I do know," he said in a near whisper, as he twirled a strand of her hair around his long index finger. "And I'd like to know more," he admitted before he turned around and made it back to the couch.

"And to think," Pam started when Eric and Sookie joined her again. "I almost thought that you two had left me to go have some fun in the back of the truck." She scooted over so Eric could sit next to her.

"We were held up," Eric explained as he sat down. "Raquelle's choices were less than favorable."

"Oh, I don't know. They suit her," Pam said, peering into the dressing room. "How about you put on something pretty for us, doll?"

Sookie stepped into the dressing room and closed the red-purple velvet curtain behind her. She pulled Pam's white shirt over her head and wiggled out of her jeans. Sookie wasn't sure if she should remove more, but with one look at how revealing the outfits were, she reached behind her back and unbuckled her bra.

"What the fuck?" Sookie said under her breath as she held up the first outfit. She first removed the sheer tights from the hanger and pulled them on. Once the material was taut against her pale legs, she noticed that they had a subtle shimmer to them – they were really quite beautiful. Next, Sookie put on the tiny white shorts. They didn't completely cover her cheeks and rested on the swell of her bottom like a second skin. The top – if it could even be called a top – was merely white suspenders that were wide enough to cover her nipples if she positioned them in the right spot. Even though the suspenders were particularly raunchy since they concealed next to nothing, they were Sookie's favorite part of the outfit since they were covered with hundreds of tiny, glittering crystals.

Sookie stepped out of the dressing room with all the confidence she could muster – which wasn't much.

"Yes!" Pam said as soon as she laid her eyes on Sookie.

Eric's reaction, while silent at first, was just as obvious. His eyes grew dark and his mouth was open slightly. His muscles tensed under his knit shirt, his fists balled up, and his pants tightened. He let out a shaky breath, grabbed a throw pillow that was next to him, and placed it on his lap. Finally, Eric managed, "I agree with Pam."

Sookie tried on the remaining pastel outfits, all of which were denied save for a light pink bodysuit whose sides were cut out and laced up like a corset. Raquelle joined them when Sookie was in the dressing room and slid four more outfits past the velvet curtain. "Those are more Fangtasia-esque," she said, peering down at Eric with narrow eyes and a grin before she walked away.

The first thing out of the dressing room were the thigh-high heeled boots. They were black and mimicked leather, but were far shiner. Covering her pale legs was fishnet stockings that were layered under black bottoms that concealed just about as much as panties did. A black and red laced corset was tightly hugging her bosom and torso. "How am I supposed to dance in this?" Sookie almost added how she was supposed to breathe with the damn corset on, but breathing was no longer a concern of hers.

"It just takes a bit of practice," Pam said sweetly.

"Pam will teach you," Eric added. "We'll take it."

A black faux-leather bodysuit that reminded Sookie of Catwoman with intricate cut-outs was also added to the pile of clothes they were purchasing, as well as a short, tight red dress that plunged down her front to just below her navel and her back to right above her bottom, a black shirt whose back was cut out and braided up, a red jeweled bra and shorts set that was worn with a black mesh dress, and an exact match to the outfit that Raquelle was wearing.

As they left Tightrope, Sookie was wondering how she was ever going to work up the confidence to wear the clothes in public.

* * *

It was one in the morning when Eric and Sookie arrived back at his house. They were alone; Pam decided to stay back with Raquelle to _catch up_, and Chow was off doing whatever Chow did when he wasn't working – probably sucking some poor human dry. Sookie sat down on the edge of one of the stools at the bar while Eric popped a couple bottles of blood into the microwave.

Eric turned away from the microwave to face Sookie; on his face was an expression that she couldn't quite decipher. He was as still as stone and his eyes pierced her like a sharp dagger. He stared at Sookie until the microwaved beeped. He pulled out the warm bottles, popped the tops, and slid one Tru Blood across the bar top to Sookie. "What happened on the phone with Bill?"

Sookie's hand stilled around the heated bottle. "I don't really feel like talking about it," she said softly, but she knew that didn't make any difference. It was only a matter of time before Eric started to question, and he already allotted her a whole day to mull over what Bill said. "Well, he first wanted to know what happened. He didn't seem to concerned that werewolves were in my house. He didn't want to know why or what they were after." Sookie felt her eyes well up with bloody tears; she shut her eyes tightly to hold them back and she took a long drink from her Tru Blood. "He only wanted to know if you really did make me into a vampire."

"Of course he did," Eric said lightly, not sounding surprised at all. "Then what?"

"He was mad that you made me," Sookie released a breathy, sarcastic huff. "He sounded like he hated talking to me, and then when he said he had to go, I asked him when I'd hear from him again. He said I wouldn't," Sookie finished in an odd tone, and she took another long sip of her blood. "He hates that you're my maker."

It was Eric's turn to laugh lightly. "I'm not surpised. I don't think he ever wanted you to be a vampire."

Sookie's brows furrowed at that comment. "How come?"

Eric smiled. "Well, think about it. If a vampire has a human companion, that human is the vampire's main source of blood – perhaps only, like you were for Bill. The vampire prefers the blood of his or her human above all. Any other human's blood is just – _average_. It's above the taste of synthetic blood, of course, but lacks the deep connection of the companion that the vampire craves," Eric paused to take a quick sip and then continued, "Now Bill can't feed off you. Well, he _can_ still drink your blood, but it won't be the same."

There was a pregnant silence between the two of them until Sookie broke it. "So, Bill was only with me for my blood, is what your saying?"

"No, I'm not saying that it was the only reason, but it could be a contributing factor," Eric explained as delicately as he could. Eric was not going to stand idle while Sookie was suffering; he'd show her Bill's true character, and he'd help her forget all about him.

"Did you ever have a human companion?" Sookie finally asked when her curiosity got the better of her.

Eric showed small signs of surprise at Sookie's question: his brows raised, his expression grew blank, and his jaw relaxed. He should have been expecting such a question since it was Sookie who he was speaking to after all, but it still caught him off-guard. "No, I didn't. It's too much work to keep a human happy when she is alive, and it's too heartbreaking when she's gone." Eric looked down at the bar top and studied the wood absentmindedly. "I did have a companion, though. I was Godric's companion for...well, my whole life up until he died."

"So, you never wanted a human companion?" Sookie inquired with wide eyes.

Again, Sookie's question surprised him. Of course there were handfuls of humans who he desired in his thousand years of living, but it wasn't really for their companionship as much as it was for their blood. Well, except for one human, who was different than all the others. Eric stepped out from behind the bar and stood in front of Sookie. His eyes were all over her, and he caressed her soft cheek with his hand. His touch was so light that it sent shivers up Sookie's back. "I did not too long ago," he explained as he cradled her face with his two strong hands and inhaled the sweet scent of her hair. Her blonde locks smelled like strawberries. "Her beauty was otherworldly and intoxicating, and her voice, despite its accent, was melodious." His soft palms lingered over her skin, running slowly down her bare neck. "But she belonged to another, and she didn't return my feelings." His hands drifted lightly down her sides before placing them on her thighs and giving them a gentle squeeze. "At least, she pretended not to."

Sookie couldn't help but think that maybe, just maybe, Eric was talking about her. She wanted to ask, but her mouth was as dry as a cotton ball. Eric's hands on her body made her feel more alive than she ever felt when she was human.

Eric smiled and grasped her hand in his. "I have a present for you."

Sookie blinked and snapped out of her trance. "You do?" Eric nodded and pulled her off the bar stool. "Why'd you get me a present? You just spent God knows how much money on new clothes for me."

"You needed that," Eric explained as he brought Sookie down a long hall that she guessed led to his bedroom. "This present is something that you want...well, it's something that I want, at least." He opened the door to his bedroom, held it open for Sookie, and motioned for her to step inside.

His room was just as Sookie imagined it would be: fit for royalty. His walls were decorated with a beautiful sage, forest green, and gold pattern, and his furniture was a deep mahogany wood with what Sookie suspected were real gold handles. His four-poster bed was huge in both width and length and covered with a gorgeous green comforter. He had no ceiling light or lamps; instead, several candles were spread around his room, burning brightly and leaving a soft, lingering scent of the sea. Sookie didn't see any presents; she put one and two together. "I am not going to sleep with you, Eric."

"What a pity, but that's not your present...although, sex with me would make a good present," Eric said with a small smile as walked over to his closet and pulled out a gift bag from Tightrope. "Open it."

Sookie studied Eric's expression, and took the gift bag from his hands. She took out the red tissue paper, her hand delved into the black bag, and she pulled out the most beautiful lingerie she had ever seen: a set complete with a bra, panties, and a see-through baby doll top that was just long enough to brush the tops of her thighs. The fabric of the lingerie was a beautiful pale pink lace and the center of the bra and its straps were decorated with pink rhinestones. The lingerie seemed to shimmer in the candlelight.

Eric looked like Christmas had come early. "Do you like it?"

Sookie's cheeks were a dull, rosy red. "It's very beautiful," she said, holding the lingerie delicately in her hands as she ran her fingertips gently across the soft lace. "Is this for Fangtasia?"

"Oh no," Eric said with a slight smile. The flames of the lit candles flickered in his blazing, azure eyes. "That's just for you, and maybe for me, if I'm lucky." His low voice sent shivers through Sookie's body.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Sookie asked in a whisper, yet down to her very bones, she knew exactly what Eric's suggestion meant – but she had to be sure.

Slowly, Eric moved to stand in front of Sookie. He was so close that Sookie could count his eyelashes if she wanted. Eric's fangs were still retracted, but the look on his face suggested that it was only a matter of time before they came down.

Sookie could only stand still and stare into Eric's eyes.

Eric lightly brushed his lips over Sookie's, not quite kissing her just yet. He marveled in how soft her lips felt against his, as if they had never been kissed by that damn Bill Compton. Her breath smelled of blood, but had the faintest scent of fruit from when she was still human. Sookie's skin had the tiniest hint of heat beneath his cold hands. After holding her lips captive against his, he felt Sookie lean in to kiss him slowly, softly. Eric delighted in one sweet moment of victory before pulling away from Sookie.

When he spoke, his voice was low and hoarse. "I think you know what it's supposed to mean."

* * *

Only one thought went through Sookie's mind as she walked back to her bedroom with the small gift bag in her arms: _did she really just kiss Eric Northman_?

Just as she opened the door to her room, her cellphone beeped to tell her that she had received a new text message. Sookie crossed her room, grabbed her phone, and flipped it open. Tara's name was plastered across the screen. Sookie pressed the button that led to Tara's message and read:

_Sookie, where the fuck are you? Sam's all kinds of pissed off, and he said you were better off dead than what really happened to you! I went by your house. All your things are still there, and your car. Where are you? What the fuck is happening? Please let me know you are still alive – Tara._

Sookie slammed her phone shut, and muttered to herself, "God _damn_ you, Sam Merlotte!"


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: I apologize for this chapter taking forever to go up. I came down with a nasty cold, and this chapter proved difficult for me to write. Now, however, I am feeling better and have more patience, so here you go.**

**Please note—I bumped this up to M. This was always going to be an M-rated story, it just took a bit for me to get there. My stuff is pretty explicit (go big or go home, right?), so if that's not your cup of tea, you might want to stop reading. :(**

**A part of this chapter was inspired by a scene in Club Dead, which is the third book in the SVM series. However, this chapter in no way spoils anything. Book readers should be able to pick up on the inspiration, though! **

**Thanks for all the feedback! It really keeps me motivated to write more. Enjoy!~**

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_**Made – **_**Chapter 5**

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_Like a curious child out of her room at night, she tiptoed down the long hallway. She peered at each door she passed, making sure it was shut so no one would catch her out of bed, headed toward Eric Northman's bedroom. Her feet moved across the carpeted hall lightly, making absolutely no sound. She pressed her body up against the wall, concealed in a blanket of shadows, just in case someone popped out of a corner. As she slithered down the hall, her pastel pink sheer baby doll top ghosted over the tops of her thighs playfully. _

_Sookie Stackhouse was on a mission, and that mission was to sneak into Eric's bed and have her way with him. _

_A few more paces down the hall and Sookie finally arrived outside of Eric's door. She considered knocking—it would be the courteous thing to in case Eric was in the middle of something private—but opted against it in case she'd disturb the others. She couldn't wake them; she couldn't be seen. Instead, she reached a hand out, grasped the doorknob, and turned it._

_Curled up under a mountain of blankets was Eric Northman who was sound asleep. Sookie scampered inside his room and quietly shut the door behind her. She watched Eric intently, not moving until she was certain that she didn't wake him. When Sookie didn't hear or see Eric stir in his bed, she took a couple of steps closer. _

_Eric looked altogether dead, and Sookie laughed to herself when she supposed he was. She stood at the foot of his bed, watching him. Not once did he snore, nor did his blankets rise and fall with his chest since he had no need to breathe. He looked like a corpse, but instead of being laid out in a coffin, he was laid out in a bed just for Sookie._

_Sookie rubbed her hands together victoriously before she lifted up the ends of Eric's comforter, tossing them over herself as she crawled onto his bed. Eric's long legs were parted just enough for Sookie to wiggle up in between them. _

_Immediately, she noticed that Eric liked to sleep in nothing at all. She also noticed that he was half-hard, and she idly wondered if he was dreaming of her. She took her time taking in the sight before her; his milky white skin, the neatly trimmed thatch of dark blond curls, how large he was even without being fully erect. Sookie brought her nose down and inhaled his scent—rich and masculine. It's intoxicating, and she's certain she could get worked up just from the way he smells and nothing else. _

_But somehow, that's just not gonna cut it this time._

_With a confident hand that even surprised herself, Sookie grabbed Eric's cock at the base. It's almost humorous to her how tiny and slim her fingers looked wrapped around his girth, and she had to suppress a giggle so she didn't wake him up. She doesn't move her hand right away; she studied the weight of him in her hands like a scientist does a curious specimen, holding it up to see how it moved on its own. Then, she gave one light tug, marveling at how his cock seemed to glide along with her hand as if the two were made for each other. She squeezed the tip gently, and as if she found Eric's switch and flipped it on, he started to respond in her hand. The more Sookie stroked, the more his cock responded until the head was a violent red-purple and throbbing in her hand._

_Sookie poked her head out from the covers to see if Eric was still asleep. As soon as she saw that his eyes were closed, she escaped beneath the comforter again and went back to it. The longer her eyes were on him, the more enthralled she was. She watched as a small white glistening drop appeared at the tip, and she wondered how he might taste—_

_Before she could tell herself no, Sookie poked her tongue out, swirling it over the head of Eric's cock as she lapped up the fluid. A smooth, salty taste erupted in her mouth, and Sookie concluded that it really wasn't as bad as she was expecting. Wanting to explore further, Sookie opened her mouth up wide, bringing it down over Eric's hard cock. She felt the tip bump up against the back of her throat, and she had the sensation of gagging, but swallowed it down, not moving so she could get used to the feeling. She felt Eric pulsing excitedly in her mouth, begging for release while his body remained still as a board. Sookie flicked her tongue so that it was pressed against the underside of his cock, and ran up the length to suck at the head. She brought her mouth back down over him, and up, down, and up, bobbing in an increasing tempo until his cock swelled with ecstasy, coming in hot spurts down Sookie's throat._

_With the back of her hand, Sookie wiped off the mess around her mouth. She was surprised that after this whole time, Eric still didn't wake up. Maybe he was really dead? Really, really dead. Tentatively, Sookie searched for the ends of the blankets, and popped out her head._

_When she looked up, it was into Bill's eyes. Not Eric's._

Sookie jerked awake. Her whole body felt tense and her fangs were down. She sat up in her bed, mulling over what she had just dreamed about, but it was escaping from her mind like water escapes from cupped hands. All she could remember was that she was with Eric, enjoying his body, and then he turned into Bill. She ached; seeing his face so explicitly in her dream, almost as if he was literally right in front of her, made her stomach twist uncomfortably. She'd be lying if she said she didn't miss Bill, but was she also royally pissed off at him. Sookie hated that he still had some kind of hold over her, but she supposed that was mainly her fault since she was in control of her feelings.

Pushing her body up, Sookie got out of her bed and felt her fangs retract with a small click. She also didn't understand why she had such a sensual dream about Eric. Did his blood still have a hold on her in that department, or was it because she thought he was attractive? Did she really want to do what she did in the dream? Or did she just dream all that because she was lonely? Sookie did have to admit that she was lonely; Bill left her feeling so completely empty that she could hardly take it, but she was fairly certain that she didn't only want Eric's lips and hands on her body simply because she missed the touch of another man. A part of her deeply desired feeling Eric's body pressed hungrily against hers no matter what her situation was.

But did Eric still truly want her now that she was no longer human? He had kissed her last night—well, he almost did. He also gave her some sexy lingerie, and that had to mean something, right? She had nothing to offer him anymore, no sweet blood of hers to nourish him, so maybe he was only flirting with her like he does with just about everyone.

Sookie really hoped she was wrong.

She brought her fingertips up to her head and massaged her temples. Sookie's head felt like it was being squeezed by an iron vise. She hated not knowing what to feel, or how to feel. She hated that Eric was so incredibly forward with her, but still always enigmatic. She hated how Bill left her in the dust...maybe she really just hated _Bill_ now.

Rummaging in her new dresser, Sookie pulled out some black exercise pants and a bright pink sports bra. She had an appointment with Pam—she was going to teach Sookie how to dance, and Sookie figured that workout clothes was the ideal choice for what to wear since she knew she'd be moving around a lot. She dreaded her dance session with Pam, but was excited about it all at the same time. Sookie really enjoyed being around Pam now. She figured if she could no longer talk to Tara, then she'd at least have Pam to talk to.

With her new change of clothes and towel in tote, Sookie padded towards the bathroom and hopped in the shower.

* * *

"Have you _ever_ seduced a man?" Pam asked as she watched Sookie attempt to dance. "You're doing it _all _wrong."

Sookie glared at Pam. As pompous as it sounded, she never needed to seduce a man. All the _normal _men did not shut up enough for her to keep any sort of relationship beyond a friendship alive, and she never needed to sell herself to Bill. "I am not really much of a dancer," Sookie explained as she tightened her ponytail.

They were in a room at Fangtasia that Sookie didn't even know existed; a dance studio. The floor was wooden and a whole wall was covered top to bottom with mirror panels. Sookie hated the idea of dancing in front of a mirror. It was embarrassing enough that she had to dance in front of Pam when she didn't really know how; the addition of the mirror wall just made it worse.

Pam signed, and walked over to join Sookie in front of the mirror. Sookie watched as Pam's eyes glanced over her, as if she was sizing her up. "Follow me, cupcake. I'll go slow." Pam parted her legs slightly, standing firmly.

Sookie echoed Pam's stance and glanced at her expectantly in the mirror. "Sway your hip out to the side," Pam instructed, and Sookie watched as she swung her hip to the right. A beat later, Sookie followed, popping her hip out, but feeling very foolish when she did. She thought that she looked more like a stubborn, bratty teenager who wasn't getting her way instead of a sexy dancer. Pam noticed Sookie's discomfort and added, "Relax so you can move your body fluidly," she said, taking a couple of paces closer to Sookie till her hands were gently rested on Sookie's shoulders. "Just let go of all your inhibitions, all your worries, everything that has been bothering you the past couple of days, and just let your body melt." Her glossy pink lips were close to the shell of Sookie's ear. "Think of something that makes you feel good to get there; something that makes you feel on fire."

On fire—well, she knew what that felt like; it was every time Bill caressed her face, wrapped his strong arm around her waist, cupped her once warm breasts with his cool, needy hands. But it just made her cold inside and feel utterly forsaken when she thought of Bill. Eric brought the heat now; she remembered how his lips felt against hers, and imagined them kissing other parts of her body.

With the thought of Eric's eyes all over her, and Pam's hands on her hips, she swayed seductively with Pam's guidance. "That's more like it!" Pam exclaimed, removing her hands, and Sookie couldn't help feeling proud of herself. "Now we've got to add your arms into the mix. As you move your hips, touch your body," she said with a bright smile.

"What?" Sookie asked incredulously, her skin flushing a dull red.

Pam's light laughing didn't help her embarrassment. "Not like that," she said, "just run your hands down your body. Here, I'll show you." For a moment, Sookie was worried that Pam was going to touch her. Instead, Pam placed her palms on her shoulders, and Sookie watched as she ran them languidly over the swell of her breasts, her bare sides, and the slight curve of her hips. "Like that; make the men want to touch you, and maybe the ladies, too."

Sookie considered what Pam said with a strange face. She certainly did not want people touching her that she didn't know, and she prayed that Fangtasia had some kind of security personnel to make sure that the patrons kept their hands to themselves. Trying to put the thought of hungry hands reaching to her out of her mind, Sookie pressed her palms against her upper chest and brought them slowly over her body as she rocked her hips.

They danced in the studio for a good hour. Pam showed her how to use her new speed for different dance moves, how to pop her hips, shake her ass, and how to tease the customers. Sookie expected to feel dirty after dancing so provocatively, like a low-class scarlet woman, but she felt quite the opposite. She felt sexy, liberated, and so very feminine.

"You did so well for your first time! Maybe you'll get to use the pole!" Pam said excitedly as she led Sookie out of the dance studio.

"Uh, I don't want to be a stripper," Sookie said. Dancing was alright; she didn't really mind it after all was said and done, but she wasn't going to let just anyone see her in the buff. All the practice in the world couldn't make her that unreserved.

Pam chuckled. "I don't mean stripping, just dancing with the pole," she explained with a smile. "Ready to show Eric your moves?"

"What?" Sookie squeaked. She knew this would be coming—of course she'd have to show Eric how she danced before he she actually had to work, but she was still incredibly nervous about the whole ordeal. Sookie cleared her throat and said, "Um, sure, but would it be okay for me to make one quick phone call?"

"Of course you can," Pam said sweetly as she ran her hand lightly down Sookie's bare arm. "You can make your phone call while you change."

"Change?" Sookie asked weakly.

"Into one of your dancer costumes," Pam said with an excited nod, running her eyes up and down Sookie's body, examining her sweaty clothes. "You can't dance for Eric in that."

Sookie sighed, thanked Pam, and ran back to their house. She was able to arrive faster than she had previously—her speed must be improving, and for that, Sookie was glad. Her new life, while she still had trouble getting used to it, did have its perks. As soon as Sookie made it to her room she closed the door behind her, snatched up her phone off the beside table, and dialed a number she knew by heart.

"_Hello?"_ the voice called from the other end.

"_Sam? It's me,"_ Sookie said into her cell phone.

"_Oh my God, Sookie, how are you?" _Sam's voice sounded strained. Sookie could tell that he was trying to contain his temper.

"_I'm fine, Sam, thanks, and yourself?"_

"_Good, where are you? Tara said you haven't been by your house in a couple of days, and you haven't come into work since-"_

"_Yeah, Sam, about that—I don't appreciate you running off at the mouth to Tara. My business is none of yours, and it's up to me to tell Tara where I am, not you."_

Sam paused before he spoke. _"Everyone was worried, Sookie, and I didn't tell her exactly what happened to you."_

"_You told her enough," _Sookie protested stubbornly.

Sam didn't want to argue. He might have been mad, but he didn't want to have a sour conversation with Sookie—not after he hadn't truly spoken to her in days. _"Where are you, Sookie?"_

"_I'm in Shreveport."_

"_At Fangtasia with Eric?"_

Sookie considered his question before answering it. _"Yes, I am at Fangtasia with Eric."_

"_What happened to you, Sookie?"_

"_Well, I was almost killed a couple nights ago by some werewolves. They showed up at my house again, and that's why I came to Shreveport so Eric could keep me safe."_

"_I could keep you safe..."_

Sookie's voice tensed. _"Maybe you could if I was still human."_

Another pause. _"So, you're really a-a-"_

"_Vampire, yes."_

"_Why'd you let this happen to you, Sook?"_

It was like Bill all over again. _"I didn't _let _this happen to me, Sam. I told you I was dying."_

"_I'll come for you," Sam said instantly._

"_What? What do you mean?"_

"_I'll get you out of that mess. I know things with Eric can't be going too well; I know how he can be-"_

"_Things have been going alright, Sam. Eric's different with me now."_

"_Now that he doesn't want to kill you, you mean?"_

Sookie felt her temper rising. _"Eric never wanted to kill me. He could have a hundred times, but he never did." _

"_I don't like the sound of this, Sook."_

"_I don't like the sound of _you_, Sam."_

Sam continued as if she hadn't just said that. _"I'll come and get you, Sookie."_

"_Don't bother, Sam. This is my life now. Both of us have to come to terms with that." _

"_But you don't-"_

"_Look Sam, I have to go." _

"_But Sookie-"_

"_I'm sorry, Sam. I'll talk to you later."_

Sookie didn't wait for Sam's response; it'd probably just be a protest, anyway. Instead, she slammed her phone shut, hanging up on her friend and boss, and felt a bit guilty. Her and Sam had been through a lot, and they had their fair share of fights. But Sam didn't understand, and Sookie couldn't stand hearing him say how he was going to march in, rescue her, and save the day. He was so jaded; Sookie couldn't be saved, nor did she want to. She knew she couldn't go back to Bon Temps, not yet, not when she would want to drink the blood of every human around her until their veins were dry as deserts. Here in Shreveport, she was protected, taken care of, and watched over so she wouldn't become a monster.

However, as she changed into one of her costumes, she couldn't help but wonder whether or not Sam would truly come for her like he said he would.

* * *

_Please be in the home somewhere, please be in the house somewhere, please be in the house somewhere_, Sookie thought to herself as she fidgeted in her tiny shorts and cut-out top.

She walked down the hall to Eric's bedroom and knocked on his door. "Eric?"

"Come in," Eric's voice called out. Sookie gathered up all of the confidence she had, opened the steel light-tight door, and walked into Eric's room. She cleared her throat, and Eric turned around to face her. His eyes traveled up and down Sookie's body and a small, devilish smile appeared on his lips. "What can I do for you, Sookie?"

Her name on his lips made her feel like putty. "Uh, Pam told me to come here," Sookie said in a tiny voice, shifting her weight when she saw Eric's eyes on her. "I'm supposed to show you what I learned with her earlier tonight."

Eric's eyes lit up. "Oh, well, we can't do that in here," he told her, and Sookie was glad to hear it. Dancing for Eric in his _bedroom_ just seemed a bit too scandalous. He held out his hand for her to take. "Come on."

Sookie took Eric's hand and allowed him to lead her toward a room in the house she hadn't seen before. It was one fit for private affairs; complete with a refrigerator, microwave, several comfortable couches, and plenty of space to dance. _How quaint_, Sookie thought to herself sarcastically. "You can dance for me here," Eric told her.

He pulled out two bottles of Tru Blood and popped them in the microwave. As he waited for the timer to go off, Eric asked, "How did the dance session go with Pam?"

Sookie hesitated; should she tell him how uncomfortable she felt about dancing at first, but then when she thought of him, her body seemed to take over as if she had been dancing for years? "It went well," Sookie finally said, "Pam was very helpful."

"She told me you are a fast learner," Eric said in a voice that made Sookie's lower body tingle.

"Uh, that's kind of her to say," Sookie managed as she tried to get a hold of herself. "She probably thinks I'm better than I actually am."

He smiled, passed a bottle of blood to Sookie, and held the other in his hand as he situated himself on the couch. "I'll be the judge of that."

Sookie felt her insides twist at Eric's words. She brought the bottle up to her mouth and swallowed a large gulp, hoping the synthetic blood would keep her nerves at bay. Oh, how she wished Pam were here. Pam had already seen her made a fool of herself, and something about her kept Sookie calm.

When Sookie did not start moving, Eric cocked his brows and said, "So, are you going to show me?"

"Uh, sure," Sookie managed, her stomach so knotted up that she thought she might be sick. She took another sip from the bottle, held the warm synthetic blood in her mouth, and finally swallowed it down slowly. She stilled, and allowed her mind to erupt with thoughts of Eric; his touch on her body, his tongue in her mouth, his earnest hands working off her clothes. Sookie felt a deep pull in her lower belly; her body seemed to melt and her limbs became as flexible as molding clay.

She moved with more fervor than she had when she was with Pam; something about Eric being in front of her, watching her, awoke a deep desire inside of her to arouse Eric. Sookie didn't feel like herself as her palms coddled her breasts, and she looked up into Eric's dark eyes and asked, "So, is Pam right?"

Eric inhaled sharply and cleared his throat. "How about you come closer?"

Whether or not this was a good idea, Sookie didn't really care. She took a few steps closer to Eric, trying to be as seductive as possible, and hoping she did not look foolish. She was close enough now that when she swayed her hips out to the side, Eric could have reached out and touched her if he wanted to.

Apparently, this wasn't good enough. "A bit closer."

A few more steps and Sookie was standing right in front of him; her thighs trapped between his legs.

Eric had to crane his neck up to look in her eyes. "Closer."

Sookie looked down. "If I get any closer, I am going to be sitting in your lap."

"And how is this a problem?" Eric asked with a half-smile on his lips.

Sookie felt another tug in her lower body and heat start to rise between her legs. She could think of a million reasons why this was a problem, why Eric should not be as bold as to request such a thing, and why she shouldn't even consider it. But her whole being screaming at her to continue erased all those reasons. She also had absolutely no reason to feel guilty; Bill had probably already committed ten kinds of infidelities against her already.

With the thought of revenge deep in her mind, Sookie straddled Eric's hips and lowered herself onto his lap. She inhaled sharply when she felt his hard cock beneath her, straining against her, and she couldn't help but look down at Eric with wide, searching eyes. She was unsure what to do next; Pam's teaching didn't go this far.

Eric, on the other hand, knew exactly what to do with Sookie on top of him. His large hands gripped her smooth, milky white thighs and gave them a gentle squeeze. Sookie gasped at his touch on her bare skin; it seemed like ages ago since a man had touched her like this, even though it couldn't have been more than a week or so since Bill and her were together. Eric's hands on her body sent chills up her back.

When Eric snaked his palms up her body to grab her waist, the material of Sookie's shorts drifted up, tucking into the fold where her thighs met her hips. Eric's fangs descended at the sight of her newly exposed flesh, and he looked up at Sookie with a lust-filled expression on his face and asked, "Do you know what to do next?"

His thick voice would have knocked all the air out of Sookie's lungs had she still been human. Instead, a small moan worked its way up her throat as her fangs worked their way down. She swallowed and said in a tiny voice, "Show me?"

A wide smile broke across Eric's face. His hands gripped her hips tighter as he rocked her body against his lap. The friction made Sookie feel like her whole body was lit up. Her hands clenched Eric's broad shoulders, and she pressed her forehead against his as she released a low groan. She could _feel _Eric throbbing against her cool skin. "Now you try," he said with a hoarse voice.

Sookie gripped Eric's shoulders tighter as she picked herself up and _thrust _against Eric's straining lap. She moved against him as if there wasn't material keeping their hungry flesh apart, and she could feel a mixture of heat and moistness start to pool in between her legs. Her face was so close to Eric's that she could feel his gasps warm on her skin. "Like this?" Sookie asked, ghosting her lips over Eric's as she poked her tongue out and licked his sharp fangs.

Her question was answered when Eric captured her lips in a greedy kiss. When he pushed his tongue past her parted lips and explored her hot mouth, Sookie couldn't help but release a moan. She pressed herself against Eric's chest, but did not stop moving her body.

"Hold still," Eric croaked, placing his lips on the curve of her neck where his fangs once penetrated her skin when he made her. When Sookie stopped moving against him, he brought a hand down from her hip and reached between her legs. He chuckled when he felt that Sookie's liquid heat slightly saturated her tiny shorts. "And to think; you've already gotten these dirty and you haven't even been wearing them for an hour."

"It's not my fault," Sookie argued through a high-pitched sigh.

Eric's fingertips rubbed her slit through the material before escaping into her shorts. Sookie felt like she was on fire when the pads of his fingers pressed against her bare skin, sliding down to separate her moist and hungry folds. "You feel even better _here_," Eric whispered as his fingers glided up into Sookie's heat.

Sookie let out a muffled, strained noise against Eric's skin. She felt his fingers moving inside of her, twisting and curling, pressing against her inner walls, sliding in and out of her, and she couldn't help but move against his touch.

She noticed that Eric lifted his hips up toward her, pressing hard against her, seeking more contact, more friction, and that was enough. Sookie came, clenching down around Eric's fingers as she rode out her orgasm, her mouth wide and her head thrown back.

Eric's hand on her hips gripped her tightly, and he shuttered beneath her. When Sookie regained some sense of reality, she noticed a strange dampness beneath her that wasn't her own doing. Sookie scooted back on Eric's lap and glanced down at where his erection once was. When she looked back up at Eric, her eyebrows were cocked and she said, "Looks like I am not the only one with dirty pants."

Eric smiled widely and moved to place his lips against Sookie's, but was interrupted with a knock at the door. Eric immediately pulled away and called out, "Yes?"

"I need to speak to you," Pam said from the other side of the door. "It's important."

"I'll meet you in your room in five minutes," Eric said, lifting Sookie up off his lap and setting her down on the couch. He lowered his voice to speak to Sookie. "I have to go," he said, running his fingers through her hair. "You can start work tomorrow."

She watched as Eric left, and she couldn't help but hope that he wasn't just moving onto the next girl to lay.

Knowing Eric, she couldn't be certain.

* * *

Eric walked into her room with a clean pair of pants; Pam was pacing restlessly.

"You needed me, Pam?" Eric asked.

Pam turned to look at Eric. "I got a call today about Bill," she said flatly. "I know where he is."

"Who did you get this information from?" Eric asked instantly.

"That werewolf whose family owes you," Pam said, crossing her arms. "He called Fangtasia today with a message for you. He said he thought you ought to know what he had to say, and hopes that it clears his family's name."

"What did he want me to know?"

Pam inhaled before speaking, "He said he heard that there's a vampire from Louisiana in Mississippi."

"Mississippi?" Eric asked.

"Yes, apparently with the king," Pam added, biting her pink lip.

"Did he seem to know I was missing a vampire in my area?"

"No," Pam said, "he said he just thought it was information you'd find useful."

Eric ran his hand through his blond hair as he considered what Pam told him. He didn't understand why Bill was in the clutches of the king—if he was truly kidnapped as Sookie said he was, or if he stayed there willingly.

"Are you going to go to Mississippi?" Pam asked, sounding worried.

He really ought to. If a vampire in his area was missing, it was up to him to hunt said vampire down. But he knew about the king of Mississippi; he was nearly two thousand years his senior, powerful, and ruthless to boot. He could be quite the challenge. Eric also had a baby vampire to teach and take care of, and a business to run. "I'll probably have to go eventually," Eric said thoughtfully. "But not yet; I'll wait until more information comes in."

Pam nodded, and Eric moved to walk out of her room. Before he closed the door behind him, he turned and said, "Oh, and call Alcide back. Tell him to come here so he and I can talk if he wants his family's debt to be clear."


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N:** Thanks for all of the lovely comments! Anyway, I know that vampires don't shake hands in the books. Alcide and Eric make a deal in this chapter, and they shake on it, but it's a special handshake shall we say? Sorry there's no spicy stuff in this chapter—sexy scenes won't be in every one unfortunately!

Enjoy!~

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_**Made **_**– Chapter 6**

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_That new dancer...why hasn't she always been here? She's so beautiful..._

_Nice golden hair...I wonder if she's a natural blond. Maybe if she moved her legs just so, I could take a peak up that short skirt..._

_Who does she think she is? How did she get hired here and not me? I am ten times sexier than her, and ten pounds lighter..._

_I wish blondie would move to the left a bit more...want to get a good look at that hunk behind her...I wonder if he's gay..._

_I wonder if she gives lap dances? Maybe she and that other chick could give me one at the same time...maybe they'll even bite me if I pay extra..._

Working as a dancer at Fangtasia was worse than Sookie thought it'd be. While it was one thing dancing in front of vampires whose minds she couldn't hear thus far (she halfway expected to be able to after she was turned), it was another thing entirely when she danced for humans. She had to work extra hard to try and keep them out of her head, but even then, strong thoughts trickled in.

She was glad to get off when she did; Sookie didn't think she could have handled the mental chatter a second longer. She hurried to the backroom to take off her costume, take a quick shower, and change into a clean pair of clothes.

When she stepped out of the backroom, she could faintly hear Eric and Pam's voices coming from his office. They both sounded worried, and Sookie knew she probably should not listen in since their conversation was probably none of her business.

"So, he's certain it's Bill?" Eric asked Pam quietly, and Sookie's whole body stilled. Bill—Eric had information about Bill and he didn't tell her. How could he not tell her? Trying to contain her anger, Sookie strained her ears to listen in.

"That's what he said," Pam answered. "Alcide also said that he seemed to be there on his own accord."

Who the heck was Alcide? Sookie took one silent step closer to the door, her hand tightening around the strap of her bag. "Hmm," Eric huffed. Sookie could hear him tapping something absentmindedly on his desk. "I don't know if that's completely true, and Alcide can't know, either. He hasn't been in the king's mansion."

"We need to get Bill back," Pam said in a deadpan tone.

"That's why I am calling in Alcide."

"We're relying on him? What can a werewolf do?" Pam asked, her disapproval thick in her voice.

"He'll just be here for extra precautions if I absolutely have to go down to Mississippi," Eric told Pam calmly. "That is if he agrees to our deal. He will be in tomorrow night, you said?"

"Yes," Pam answered, pausing before she said, "He also said that Bill was spotted with his bitch of a maker."

Sookie's whole body went numb and she dropped her bag to the floor with a small _thud_. She couldn't move; her gut felt like it was being pulverized and her eyes welled with red tears. She didn't even worry about being heard, she couldn't, not when she heard that Bill was with—

"Lorena?" Eric asked after a beat.

Pam must have nodded, because Sookie didn't hear her response. She didn't need to hear anything else; she couldn't bare it. Without picking up her bag, Sookie ran back to their house and down to her room, her cheeks feeling raw from the bloody tracks of thick tears.

* * *

It was as if the scab that had formed over her broken heart had been ripped off violently without any sort of warning. Sookie was just starting to come to terms with the fact that her and Bill were now history, but now she felt completely betrayed knowing that he was with Lorena. As she clutched a pillow to her body, Sookie started to wonder if they fucked. They probably had, and Bill would have had to have been willing since Lorena released him—and to think, he had just _proposed _to Sookie a couple days prior!

The only plus was that Sookie had stopped crying. She had shed a lot of tears for Bill tonight, and every other night that he had done her wrong. Sookie didn't want to cry for him anymore. It wasn't fair in her opinion; he probably never wept over her.

Just before there was a knock at the door, her mind flashed with a strange thought from another brain—that mind was upset with another person, and Sookie wondered which human was lurking on the other side of her door, waiting for her to open up.

"Who is it?" Sookie called out as she sat up in her bed. Her voice was hoarse from the thick lump in her throat.

"It's me. Let me in," Eric said.

Sookie immediately jumped up from her bed, crossed her room, turned the doorknob, and let him inside. Eric's expression was one she couldn't quite decipher; he looked stern, not quite angry, but maybe disappointed? Sookie looked down at what he was holding—her bag—she gulped back a gasp and tried to pretend like she didn't notice what was in his right hand. "Did you need something?"

Eric held up her bag for her to take. "I believe this belongs to you." He dropped it into Sookie's hands when she held them out. "Please have a seat. There is something I want to talk to you about."

Oh _hell_. Sookie deposited her bag near her closet and gingerly sat on the edge of her bed. She had a hard time meeting Eric's eyes, so instead she kept her gaze down to the floor. She hoped the shit wasn't going to hit the fan now, but couldn't help but think it was a possibility. Sookie really did not want to argue with Eric, especially now that her tears had really worn her out.

"What happened after you changed out of your costume?" Eric asked simply, folding his arms in front of him. He was watching Sookie, despite the fact that she refused to make eye contact. He wished she would; he didn't want to to come off as a irate father scolding his disobedient child.

Sookie sighed and shuffled her feet against the carpet absentmindedly. "I heard you and Pam talking."

"About?" Eric asked.

"Bill." Just saying the name alone was painful. Horrible images erupted in her mind—Bill's body hovering over Lorena, Bill's tongue on Lorena's chilled flesh, Bill inside of Lorena...

"What about Bill?"

This must have been Eric's form of punishment for her so that she'd learn to mind her own business and briskly walk down the hall no matter what she heard from Eric's office, unless it was he calling for her. "You got word he's in Mississippi with Lorena."

Eric's fingertips lightly touched the underside of Sookie's chin, lifting her face up till she was looking at him. "You are not to eavesdrop again, do you understand? As a Sheriff, much of what happens inside my office are private conversations. If you're not invited, then you have no business listening in, and I need to be able to trust that you won't."

Sookie pulled her face away from Eric's touch. "Can you really blame me? You know I have been anxious for a scrap of news about Bill." Her tone was a far cry from being respectful toward her maker.

"I thought you'd be angry with Bill, not with me," Eric said in a flat voice.

That was enough to make Sookie's temper overflow like boiling water that had been left on a flame too long. "You say you need to trust me, but what about me needing to trust you?" Her voice was frantic, and her eyes started to sting again. "You might be my maker, but if we're to have any sort of bond, then the trust can't just be one-sided! What if I never heard your conversation? Would you have even told me?"

Her question rendered Eric speechless for several moments till he formulated a proper answer. "I would have told you eventually, if only to hasten the process of you getting over your first lover." Eric looked over Sookie, knowing that they still had a lot of growing to do together. Perhaps he should take Sookie somewhere, just the two of them, so they could work on their bond and strengthen Sookie as a vampire. Taking a vacation with his youngest progeny sounded a hell of a lot better than going down to Mississippi to retrieve her ex-boyfriend. "If there's information I know that you will benefit from, I will always give it to you."

Sookie only nodded weakly; she didn't have anything else to say. She wished that the world would come to a halt, just for a week or two, so she could at least start getting used to all the changes in her life. She felt drained, even though she had a stomach full of Tru Blood.

When Eric moved to walk out of Sookie's room, she shot up, grabbed his arm and held him back. Her searching chocolate brown eyes met his blue ones. "Are you really going to Mississippi?" Sookie asked, not even caring that her voice showed her fear and apprehension about being left alone as a baby vampire. That was the sort of thing that crummy makers like Bill did, not Eric. He couldn't just leave her here.

"I am not positive yet," Eric admitted, but since the queen wasn't too gung-ho about finding Bill and bringing him back to Louisiana, he didn't know why he should be. "I should be able to avoid it. I do not want to go."

That was mutual. "Am I going with you if you do?"

"You can't," Eric told her simply as his hand gently held the side of her face. He could no longer feel Sookie's pulse in her neck, but he felt it when she swallowed thickly. "It's dangerous for me to even go. I can't promise that I'll be able to protect you completely, so you have to stay here."

"But maybe I could help you," Sookie said hopefully.

Eric almost laughed. The king of Mississippi was nearly three thousand years old, and all of his underlings were insanely loyal. Sookie had no strength over him, and since Russell Edgington preferred men, she couldn't even charm him no matter how hard she tried. "There's no reason to get worried yet, Sookie. You can worry after I start packing."

Sookie didn't believe Eric for one second, but she didn't argue further. She allowed her hand that was still on Eric's arm to travel down to lace her fingers with his. He stilled at such an intimate gesture, but didn't pull away. His hands were rough and calloused. Sookie wondered if they were like that from when he was still a human.

"You should get some sleep," Eric told her, touching her soft blond hair with his free hand. "You were really great tonight at Fangtasia."

"Thanks," Sookie said, flushing a pale pink shade. She wanted to ask Eric if he'd stay with her tonight, or if she could stay with him, but she still felt a little sour after their dispute.

Eric placed a small, light kiss on her lips, and she shivered against his larger frame. Normally, she might have felt embarrassed, but when she felt that Eric was starting to harden between the two of them, she knew that Eric loved that he could send chills up her spine at the tiniest act.

She watched Eric cross her room and open her door when she was reminded of what happened before he stopped by to pay her a visit. "Oh, Eric?" When he turned around to look at her, she continued, "Was there a human outside my door before you arrived?"

He thought about her question for a second or two, but then shook his head. "No, the hallway was empty. Why?"

Sookie knew that her eyes were wide and that her mouth was open. She coughed, and regained her composure before she said, "I just thought I heard someone."

As she listened to Eric walk down the hall, she wondered if it was his mind that she heard earlier.

* * *

The next night there was a knock on the front door about twenty minutes after it was fully dark. Since she was right at the base of the stairs when she heard it, Sookie climbed up the steps, crossed the small kitchen, and cracked the door open enough so that she could just make out who was standing outside the house.

He was a tall, tanned man. His hair was dark and thick, and he had a ton of it both on his head and his face. He was dressed in a plaid button-up shirt that reminded her of her brother, and blue jean pants that looked nice on his long, muscular legs. His blood smelled interesting to Sookie, similar to Sam's blood, but more robust and feral.

It was a damn good thing that Sookie guzzled down a bottle or two of Tru Blood when she woke up, otherwise her fangs would have been showing. "Who are you?" Whoever the mystery visitor was, he did not look happy to be standing in front of a vampire, no matter how pretty he thought Sookie was. The fact that he was attracted to her was clear as day from his thoughts.

"I'm Alcide. I've come to see Eric Northman," the man said with a tense voice.

So, this was the guy that had spotted Bill. Sookie held the door open wider and stepped aside for Alcide to walk into the house. "Please come inside."

Alcide entered into the small kitchen and followed Sookie down the staircase. His footsteps were heavy and his strides were long. She wanted to ask him about Bill, but instead of voicing her questions, she peered into Alcide's head for possible information...

_...Can't believe I am back here again. I swore to myself I'd never come back here. It better clear my family's name. I wonder what Eric has planned to get my family out of debt, it better not be too dangerous. I am not going to put my life at risk for some fanger even if she is pretty like the one in front of me. Blonds aren't really my type, but I'd totally spend some nights with her if she wasn't dead. Too bad..._

"Ooh, _too _bad is right," Sookie said sarcastically under her breath.

"What?" Alcide asked uncomfortably.

"Nothing, Eric is waiting for you inside," Sookie told Alcide with a big fake smile. She held the door open to the conference room, waited for Alcide to walk inside, and then started to walk back to her room.

"Sookie," Eric called out to her from the room. Sookie turned on her heel and walked back. Eric was seated at the table with his hands brought together casually and a bottle of blood was placed in front of him. Pam was sitting next to him on his right, and Alcide across from him. "Please sit," he said, waving to the chair next to him on his left. "This is a conversation I do want you to hear."

She huffed to herself. She really didn't want to be here; Alcide rubbed her the wrong way, and he was prejudice towards vampires. He didn't even _know _her and he thought about spending some nights with her had she not been a vampire. Who _does_ that? Sookie grabbed a warm bottle of Tru Blood that Pam handed her and took the other free seat next to Eric. She took one giant gulp before Eric started to speak.

"You are here because you want to clear your family's name once and for all," Eric announced, not seeking an answer, for he did not look up to see that Alcide had nodded. "I hope you realize that my offer is not an easy one, since your family's debt is not a shallow one."

Alcide nodded again, his thick dark hair moved with his head slightly, and his bangs framed his face handsomely. Sookie wanted to know what debt his family had, and thought about trying to pry it from his mind since it was likely that Alcide was thinking about it, but decided against to out of what little respect she had for the man. "What's your offer?"

"My newest child—Sookie," Eric waved his hand in front of her to introduce Sookie to Alcide, who inclined his head to her. "She is _very _valuable, but very young, and that Jackson pack is hunting her. To clear the debt, you are to stay here in my home as further protection."

Alcide looked stern and troubled. According to his thoughts, he did not want to accept Eric's offer, but he wanted to do this for his family more, and he'd do whatever it took for them. "For how long?"

Eric considered his question over a sip of synthetic blood. "Well, if our friends from Jackson don't decide to pay us a visit, hmm...a couple weeks?" he asked easily.

Two weeks certainly was not a lot to Sookie considering she was now immortal and had all the time in the world, but Alcide was not, and he wasn't pleased. Sookie chanced looking in his brain again...

_...Two weeks with some fangers? At least they are awake during the night; I guess I could turn in early every day, so I don't have to be around them too much. I bet they don't even have food in the house for humans. I wonder if they will supply my groceries. I better not bet on it. I wonder what Debbie is going to say about this. I know she's with that new guy, but maybe if I was still in Jackson, we could have worked things out..._

"Sounds like she's already over you. I'd stop worry about her," Sookie said before she could stop herself.

Alcide nearly jumped out of his chair at Sookie's comment; his jaw was dropped and his eyes were wide. His tan skin even looked paler, like he had seen a ghost or something. "Fucking hell, I knew you could hear my thoughts when we were coming downstairs!"

Eric followed Alcide's suit and got to his feet. "That is to remain a secret, also," he said, pointing at Sookie. "Or you will regret it." He sounded serious as cancer and Sookie was almost shocked that Alcide didn't keel over and die from looking into his blazing, cold eyes. "Do we have a deal?"

Sookie looked up and met Alcide's gaze. She couldn't help feeling a little sorry for him. Sure, he was racist, and he judged her without knowing her from Adam, but he was here, making this deal, because she needed protection. And he would go through with it, she knew that for a fact, because she could tell that he'd do just about anything for the people he loved. Finally, Alcide said, "We have a deal."

"Excellent," said through a hiss, and he reached into a drawer to extract two switchblades, sliding one across the table to Alcide and keeping the other to himself. Eric watched as Alcide pulled out the blade, pressed it to his quivering palm, and cut a shallow line down. Alcide's thick blood flowed up from the superficial cut, and the three vampire's fangs clicked down at the sight of the red fluid. Sookie and Pam could not break their gaze with Alcide's bleeding hand while Eric dragged the tip of the blade through his ancient palm in the same fashion.

Eric held out his bleeding palm for Alcide to take, and they shook on it, sealing the deal with a blood bond.

When they withdrew their hands, Eric's cut was already starting to heal. "Alright, now that our business is taken care of, you may leave, Alcide. Pam, please show him to the room he will be staying in and help him with his bags." Sookie watched as the two of them shuffled out, and she wondered if she ought to as well. She felt slightly uncomfortable being in the room with Eric after witnessing such an odd way to shake hands. Were all deals sealed like that in the vampire world?

"Should I go back to my room, too?" Sookie asked after Eric hadn't said anything for a while. It was as if she wasn't even there; he did not acknowledge her presence.

"No, there is something I have to talk to you about." Eric walked around the conference table and sat across from Sookie. "As you might have guessed, Alcide is a werewolf."

That much was obvious to her. She could hear Alcide's thoughts, but they weren't quite like a human's, so she assumed that he had to have been a werewolf or some kind of shape-shifter since he clearly was not a vampire.

"You might have also picked up what I said when I was talking to him," Eric started. There was a gravitas about him that made Sookie worried. "That you continue to be hunted by that pack of wolves from Jackson. They know you're no longer living in your home in Bon Temps, and it won't be too long until they start looking for you elsewhere."

Sookie didn't like the idea of werewolves coming after her. What did they want from her? She had never met another werewolf before Alcide unless the ones that tried to kill her counted. Sookie knew that the werewolves must have been powerful, hyped up on V and quite a threat, otherwise he wouldn't have called in extra help. "Do you know why they're hunting me?" Sookie whispered.

"No," Eric said after considering her question, and that was the truth, but he sure wanted to know why they were. "But since they are, I'm going to have to train you up in case they figure out you're here." Eric thought it was entirely possible. Bill knew that Eric made her, and he was mad about it. When Bill was angry, he often did stupid, impulsive things that he didn't think through that ended up causing a lot of trouble—like killing off his bartender. He wouldn't put it past Bill spilling the beans about Sookie being with him in Shreveport.

"Train me up?" Sookie asked. That sounded kind of like the crap Jason went through with the Fellowship of the Sun church, and she wasn't interested in learning how to become some sort of vampire soldier.

"Teach you how to feed on your own, how to fight, how to become faster, how to conceal yourself if the sun is about to come up and you don't have proper shelter—these are all things that you need to know." Eric ticked each topic off on his fingers as he said them, and it sounded like quite a hefty list to learn in a short space of time. "You should also talk to Alcide and glean all you can about werewolves, and maybe practice your powers on him."

While her training seemed quite extensive, Sookie was extremely excited after she heard what it entailed. Maybe learning more about how to be a vampire would get her mind off all the other bullshit she had to deal with. "When do we start?"

"Tomorrow night as soon as night falls," Eric told her.


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: **Just a heads-up—Russell Edgington will eventually be in this. I don't want to copy the line of the story because I want to do something different, so his character is going to be a little different. The whole issue of Russell killing Eric's family doesn't exist in this fic, but he does still want Sookie and he does still have all those Weres.

Enjoy!~

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_**Made **_**– Chapter 7**

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There was a knock at her door about twenty minutes after it was fully dark. Sookie pulled herself out of her bed, slid on her slippers, and shuffled across her small bedroom. Through a yawn, Sookie asked, "Who is it?"

"Eric." He sounded wide awake.

He didn't ask this time for her to let him in; Sookie opened the door immediately, and held it open for Eric. "What's up?" Sookie asked nervously when he did not move from the doorway.

"We're going to go away for a couple of nights to train," Eric announced with a straight face.

Sookie's whole face lit up. Living here wasn't horrible; it was actually several steps up from her life in Bon Temps, but it was almost too much excitement all at once. That and she really did not enjoy dancing for Fangtasia already. "Where are we going?"

"A little outside Shreveport, in a more rural area," he said simply, crossing his arms over his chest. He was acting so nonchalant, but Sookie could tell that he was actually looking forward to getting out and training her some more. She wasn't sure if it was because of their bond, or she plucked it out of his brain. "I believe that training you here would be too much of a luxury. We need to get out in the wilderness."

She walked over to her closet and pulled out a medium-size suitcase that Pam let her borrow. It was hot, hot pink and had a giant "P" embroidered on the front with golden thread. "Are Pam and Alcide joining us?"

"They'll be available, and around, but not explicitly with us unless we run into some trouble," Eric told her, looking thrilled at the prospect of a fight. He turned to walk back down the hall, but kept his head in the doorway to say, "You won't have to work while we're gone, but you may feel free to bring some of your outfits if you wish." He left giving Sookie a small wink.

Only Eric would suggest such a thing of her, but as Sookie was packing, she took Eric up on his offer.

Thirty minutes later, and Sookie and Eric were speeding down the highway in Eric's red Corvette with their luggage jammed in the tiny trunk and calm instrumental music playing softly through the speakers. Sookie tapped her feet absentmindedly on the floor of the car, and stared out the windows, watching as the trees zoomed by. She loved being in Eric's car; it was the nicest vehicle she's ever been in, and she had a huge desire to drive it some day.

When the silence was too thick, Sookie finally asked, "So, where will we be staying?"

Eric kept his eyes glued on the road as he considered Sookie's question. "No where in particular."

Sookie wasn't sure if she liked the sound of that. "Are we going camping?"

He snorted with laughter. "Vampires can't sleep in tents if that's the kind of camping you're talking about. They don't provide enough protection from the sunlight." He brought his hand up to brush his hair out of his eyes. Eric held the steering wheel with a loose grip and at about eight o'clock position-wise, looking extremely relaxed. "We might be able to stay in a house if I can find a human to glamor enough into letting us, but if not then we will be retiring to the ground every morning."

"Urrgh," Sookie sighed.

"Being a vampire isn't always glamorous, unfortunately," Eric told her with a grin, remembering the way that Sookie looked when she rose from the dirt after she was made. She was a filthy mess, and she would probably hate getting all that junk in her hair again, but that was half the fun. "But I'll try my best to find us a place."

"Good," Sookie huffed. She had brought along her shower things, a hairdryer, and a bit of makeup. Now she wondered if packing all of that had been a stupid mistake.

"It would also be nice to have a bed for sex," he started thoughtfully as the corners of his lips curved up into a wide smile. "But then again, having sex outside wouldn't be half bad."

Sookie's jaw dropped, and she slapped Eric lightly on the arm. "You can't be so sure that we'll...do that!" she told him in a high-pitched voice, but she knew it was probably a lie. She'd eventually succumb to him completely.

"But I can be sure," Eric said proudly. "I know you want to." She had to admit that she was curious. That little scenario they shared after she danced for him left her wanting more. He had an expert touch and his kisses drove her crazy...not to mention that Eric felt like he was extremely well-endowed, possibly more than Bill. And he'd probably be a better lover than Bill, too, for Eric had over eight hundred years of practice in that department on him. Eric leaned over, lightly touched his fingertips to her neck, and whispered in her ear, "I can _smell_ how much you want to."

Sookie's expression was one of utter embarrassment; she slammed her thighs together, foolishly thinking that somehow that would mask the scent. She felt his fingertips stroke the nape of her neck near her hairline. "You don't have to be ashamed of what you desire, Sookie."

She had no idea what to say. She couldn't deny it since Eric had already pointed out that he had sniffed out the evidence that he truly had turned her on. _Must change the subject, must talk about anything, anything at all _other _than this_, Sookie thought to herself, until a question finally popped up in her head. "Do you know why Bill is in Mississippi?"

Eric stilled in his seat and kept his eyes glued to the road. "I am not sure why he is there, but I know that he is with the king."

"Is it bad that he is?" Sookie asked in a near whisper.

"It certainly isn't ideal," Eric said simply.

What a vague answer. Sookie wanted to try and press Eric further, but knew that she'd be fighting a losing battle. She didn't know a single thing about the king of Mississippi. Sookie hoped that he was a reasonable vampire that showed mercy. She was quickly getting over Bill Compton, but she didn't want his life to be threatened.

She had another question; one she almost did not want to ask, but had to know the answer. "Do you think he was really kidnapped, or was it just a set-up?"

Again, Eric didn't answer right away. Sookie watched his jaw clench and his fists tighten around the steering wheel as he took the exit off the highway. "I do not think Bill left on his own accord." Sookie felt herself relax considerably until Eric added, "I am not sure if he remains there willingly, though. Even if I was in Mississippi in the king's mansion with him, it'd be hard to tell. So much of what we do is secretive and deceptive, although I daresay that Bill is not crafty enough to fool Russell Edgington. He's a very old vampire; even older than Godric."

"So, are the werewolves hunting me, and Bill's kidnap related?" If they were, then fucking hell, it meant that one of the most powerful vampires in America was coming after _her_, and she was just a baby vampire.

"It's looking like that," Eric said with a heavy sigh. They were driving down a mostly deserted road, and Sookie hoped that they were headed towards humans or Tru Blood. She hadn't eaten yet. "I didn't enlist the help of Alcide Herveaux randomly. He has connections with other werewolves in Jackson who have been bragging about a new vampire to feed off of. Alcide researched, and those werewolves have connections with the king, who supplies them with V so that they stick around and do his bidding."

Sookie was extremely uneasy at this information. "How do you know that the information is true, or how do you know that Alcide is not working for Russell, too?"

"Giving me false information would only put his family further in debt, and Alcide wouldn't do that," Eric told Sookie simply, as if her question was the easiest one in the world. "And Alcide is sort of a lone wolf, to be frank." He chanced a glance at Sookie, who looked worried down to her very marrow. Eric reached over to stroke Sookie's soft hair affectionately. "There's no reason to be scared. The werewolves haven't started searching for you up here yet. If Russell decides to pay us a visit, it'd be more difficult to anticipate his arrival time since he flies and he's fast, but we can deal with it if it happens. We'll be okay; I'll make sure nothing happens to you."

Even though Sookie wanted to be frightened, thought she _ought_ to be frightened, she wasn't, and she trusted Eric when he said that they'd make it through this. Russell couldn't be _all _that bad, could he? Maybe he was just misunderstood.

They slowly emerged into a somewhat small city; it was larger than Bon Temps, but not quite as populous as Shreveport. The city was lit up with bright lights, advertising restaurants, stores, bars, strip clubs—just about everything a city could have. It didn't look familiar to Sookie at all, and she wondered if they were still in Louisiana, or if they headed so far north that they were now in Arkansas.

"You hungry?" Eric asked as they passed a McDonald's, although he was not asking Sookie if she wanted a Big Mac for dinner.

"Extremely," Sookie answered as she leaned back in her seat and inhaled the scent of humans out on the town, walking along the sidewalk to their destinations. Sookie pressed a small button on the side of the door and watched as the window rolled up automatically. Having it down was almost too much for her to handle.

"I am going to get a bottle or two of Tru Blood in you, and then you will be in charge of finding us dinner tonight." Sookie was certain that the bottles of blood were only to ebb her hunger so she wouldn't go crazy on a human and maybe kill one, and for that she was thankful. Eric drove down the road a piece and pulled into a gas station that advertised that they stocked Tru Blood and other synthetic blood products. "Sookie, look at me," Eric said sternly, and Sookie easily turned her head so that she made eye contact with him. "You are to stay in the car while I am inside the gas station, do you understand? Under no circumstances may you leave, unless there's danger."

"Yeah, okay," Sookie said, giving Eric a weird look. She thought that was a mighty odd thing of him to say, and didn't get why he demanded her to stay in the car like a child. Where the heck was she going to go? She didn't even know where she was!

But as soon as he left, she understood why Eric said the things he did. A human walked by, very close to the Corvette, and Sookie got a whiff of her sweet blood. Sookie's fangs clicked into place, and she was overwhelmed with the desire to open the door, sink her teeth into the girl's neck, and suck all the blood she had to give. But a second before Sookie even _attempted_ to move, her whole body was overcome with paralysis, all but her eyes in their sockets, but a lot of good that would do her. Her hands couldn't move one inch, much less several to open the door to the car, and she couldn't move her feet or her legs. Hell, she couldn't even arch her back up from the seat. It was like she was frozen solid.

Eric came back to the car quickly with three bottles of Tru Blood and passed two to Sookie, who could now move since she was no longer trying to feed off humans. "Did you enjoy that?" he asked with the smallest hint of a smile on his face.

"No," Sookie said stubbornly as she popped the top of one of the bottles and guzzled down a bit of it. "Did you just do that 'as your maker, I command you' sort of thing?"

"Pretty much," Eric told her simply. "You wouldn't have stayed put if I hadn't."

Sookie sure as heck wasn't thick enough to argue that point. "So, that was our bond?" Eric nodded. "So, you can make me do anything—whatever you wanted me to do—and I'd have to do it? Even if it's against my will?"

"I can, but whenever I command something of you, it will be for your benefit," Eric said before taking a sip.

"So, you won't make me have sex with you?" Sookie asked.

Eric had to laugh. "I believe that would qualify as a benefit. Don't be so quick to forget what happened the other night—you wanted it."

Again, Sookie wasn't thick enough to argue.

* * *

Later that night, Sookie was able to find herself a nice fangbanger who was more than willing to "donate" some of her blood to a couple hungry vampires. After much effort of picturing spiders crawling all over her and the disgusting smell of animal manure, Sookie was finally able to stop feeding off the human without Eric having to command her to do so.

She was certain that it was one of the hardest things she's ever done.

"You did well with that human," Eric said again when they were back in his car, driving out of the city. "I am actually impressed. Hopefully you'll be able to do that without me being there." He noticed that Sookie tensed next to him, and gently placed his hand on her cheek that was slightly rosy from feeding. "We won't be trying that soon. You still need more practice."

Sookie nodded and smiled weakly. "Thank you for being so patient with me."

"A maker must be patient with his new child," Eric told her. "Otherwise you'll never learn or be obedient, and that's a good way for a baby vampire to die."

"I guess I just thought that all maker-progeny relationships were like what Bill and Jessica have," Sookie said, staring at her feet.

"I am not like Bill, and you are not like Jessica," Eric said simply as he drove off toward a lush forest. "Bill is a lazy maker, and Jessica reacted badly to becoming a vampire since her life was taken from her." Jessica was also stubborn as hell and was a bratty teenager, but Eric conveniently left that part out since Sookie considered Jessica a friend. "We won't be anything like them."

Sookie knew that Bill wasn't a good maker with Jessica; she tried to get through to him about it, tell him he was misunderstanding her and treating her badly, but Bill could be just as stubborn as Jessica sometimes. She hoped that Jessica was doing well. Sookie missed her a lot, and often considered asking Eric if Jessica could come live with them, but never actually got around to doing it.

"Where are we going to sleep?" Sookie asked when she no longer saw any hint of a city. She wasn't even sure if they were on an actual road anymore.

"In the earth," Eric told her. He wasn't too excited about sleeping there himself, but he was looking forward to seeing Sookie emerge from the ground again, covered in dirt.

Sookie sighed. "How are we going to dig a hole? You didn't bring a shovel." Eric reached over, took her hand in his, kissed it gently and gave her a pointed look. Sookie yanked her arm back. "With our hands?" Eric nodded with a grin.

Lovely. Not only would she be covered in dirt when she woke up in the evening, but there would be dirt under her fingernails. But she supposed that it was at least better than burning to death.

They drove and drove until Eric was finally satisfied. He parked his car in the outskirts of the woods so that it was nicely concealed, and together the two of them got out. Eric didn't pop the trunk to retrieve their luggage. "Since you'll be using a lot of your energy to dig your sleeping space, how about we fly into the woods?"

"But only you can fly," Sookie said, looking utterly confused.

Eric smiled. "Yes, but I can carry you."

Sookie's eyes lit up. When she was a child, she often pretended and wished that she could fly, just like most other children. Just the prospect of flying in Eric's arms made her body overflow with excitement. "I'd like that."

Silently, he moved to stand behind her. Eric lifted Sookie up a bit off the ground so that he could easily wrap his arm around her waist without having to bend his body down. Once he had a good grip on her hips, Eric took off. They shot up into the air vertically, the air whipping around their bodies, licking Sookie's cheeks harshly, but she didn't care because she was _flying_. Once they were above the trees, Eric eased them forward a bit so that their bodies were diagonal as they traveled through the air.

With his mouth close to Sookie's ear, he whispered, "Do you like flying with me?"

"I love it, Eric!" Sookie exclaimed happily. It felt like she was on the best roller coaster ride in the history of the world.

Eric nuzzled his nose against the shell of Sookie's ear before he jutted his tongue out and swiped across it. He felt Sookie's whole body shiver against his. "Did you like that?"

Sookie's voice wasn't nearly as strong this time. "Yes," she whined, arching her neck so that more of her cool skin was exposed to him as she pressed her body against the sizable bulge that was developing in his jeans and wiggled.

What a tease Sookie Stackhouse was. Eric swallowed back a low moan that was threatening to escape, and held her body closer to his, making sure that his grip was strong and true. He captured the lower half of her ear in his mouth and sucked gently on the lobe for moment before releasing it. "How about that?"

"Yespleasemore," Sookie managed, her words flowing together as her lips parted into a small "O" from arousal.

Eric smiled into the curve of her neck before he ran his tongue along it, licking and sucking and grazing his descended fangs on Sookie's hungry flesh. Her body gave a greater lurch of pleasure, but mostly stayed still from fear of falling from Eric's grasp.

A light moan escaped Sookie's lips when Eric's free hand reached up her shirt and cupped one of her breasts through the material. He kneaded her small mound with his large hand momentarily before he pushed the material up to free her breast. "Oh God, Eric," Sookie said through a gasp when the pads of his fingertips ran light circles around her nipple, giving it a small pinch every now and then until it swelled into a hardened nub.

"And that?" Eric asked as he pressed his lips to the sensitive skin behind her ear in an affectionate kiss. The groan that worked its way up from the pit of Sookie's stomach was the perfect answer. "Too bad I can't put my mouth there just yet." The arm wrapped around Sookie's waist traveled down, worked its way past the band of her pants, and slid into her panties. Eric pressed his cool palm against her heated core before his middle finger found her clit. "Or here."

"Eric, you shouldn't," Sookie said in a weak, airy voice.

"You don't mean that," he whispered into his ear, and it was true. She never wanted him to stop, never wanted his hands to leave her body. "Just don't look down and I'll fly slower."

When he felt Sookie nod, he slowed down his speed, and tightened his arms around her again. His cool hand worked her reddened nipple into a painful arousal as his fingers in between her legs rubbed her bundle of nerves in quick swirls. When her heated center grew more moist beneath his touch, Sookie started to release quick and heavy pants into the warm air. Sookie was instinctively moving against him in just the right speed and at just the right spot for him to stiffen at the contact.

Sookie rocked her hips as best as she could into Eric's touch without wiggling free, and when Eric reached down to plunge two of his fingers into her wet channel, Sookie cried out and stilled as she released several feet above the ground, literally feeling like she was on cloud nine.

As Sookie started to come down from her high, Eric descended to the earth, landing lightly on his feet. Before Sookie could even adjust her wonky clothes, Eric spun her on her heel and captured her lips in a hungry, desperate kiss.

When they broke apart, Eric had a sated smile on his face. "What was all that for?" Sookie finally was able to ask.

"I guess you can call it your reward for being such a good baby vampire," Eric told her as he crouched down to the dirt. "Let's dig your hole."

Sookie joined him on the ground. With her new speed, digging into the earth was quick and easy work, although still quite disgusting since her arms were covered with dirt. She was just glad that it hadn't rained lately; mud would have made the job messier.

"How deep should I go?" Sookie asked once her hole sunk into the earth about three feet.

"Give it another foot or so, and make it about twice as wide," Eric instructed as he jumped in and started to help her.

Sookie was perplexed. "Why wider?"

"So there's room for two," Eric said simply.

Sookie grinned.


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: **I know some of my readers really like the plot, and some of my readers really like lemons. Hopefully this pleases everyone since it has a bit of both. Thanks for all of the feedback! It really means a lot to me and helps me stay motivated. =)

True Blood's season is almost over...I could just cry! Thank God for fanfiction, that's all I got to say!

Enjoy!~

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_**Made**_** – Chapter 8**

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"Come in, Sookie," Eric called from inside the human's house.

She looked troubled. "But she only invited you in, not me."

"Just try."

This seemed like one big waste of time, but Sookie decided to humor her maker. She lifted her foot up to step over the threshold, expecting some kind of barrier to block her out. But she was able to walk into the human's house just as easily as if it were her own home. "How was I able to come in?"

Eric was standing next to a middle-aged woman with a told-you-so expression on his face. "We're bonded. If I am granted passage into a home, then you automatically are as well. It works the other way around, too." He walked around the woman's small house and motioned for Sookie to follow him down the hall. At the end of the hall, one door led to a bathroom, and the other to a washer and dryer. "Take off your clothes."

"What for?" Sookie asked.

Eric pointed toward the laundry room. "We can't wash and dry your clothes when they're on your body."

Sookie definitely was not against having clean clothes. She removed her shirt and her pants quickly, jumbling them up in her hands and thrust them into Eric's open arms. "The rest of your clothes."

"I wash these by hand," Sookie said, pointing to her bra and panties.

"We don't have time for that," Eric told her as he pulled off his own fitted t-shirt and dark jeans. He didn't wear anything beneath his pants, and Sookie tried really hard not to stare.

She was, of course, unsuccessful. Eric wasn't even aroused, but he was still impressive. Sookie had to mentally force herself to look away from him, and then reluctantly, she reached behind her back to unbuckle her bra and pulled off her underwear, tossing them into the machine.

Sookie turned to walk over to the bathroom, but Eric placed his hand on her shoulder and spun her around. She tried to cover herself, but he held her arms firmly at her sides. "I want to see you," Eric told her as his eyes ran all over Sookie's frame, taking in the swell of her breasts, the flatness of her stomach, the curves of her hips, and the small thatch of golden curls between her supple thighs. Eric's eyes were wide and protuberant, and is lips opened just enough so that his partially descended fangs were showing. "I wasn't expecting you to be so beautiful," he whispered, his voice thick with lust.

"I wasn't expecting you to get hard in this dingy laundry room," Sookie said, trying to keep her eyes above Eric's waist.

Eric smirked. "Surprise," he said before he followed Sookie back to the bathroom.

Sookie fiddled with the shower knobs and let the water run so it could warm up. "You first, or me?"

"I think we should get in together," Eric told Sookie, wrapping his arm around her waist to pull her close. Sookie gasped against his cool chest when she felt his length press against her lower belly, throbbing against her skin. "In order to save time, of course."

Sookie couldn't help but like Eric's idea. Her body was already responding in the most fantastic ways; there was pressure in her lower belly, warmth between her legs, and every single cell of her being screamed for more of Eric's touch. But Sookie knew if she agreed to this, then there was no turning back from here; she'd have to cut all lingering ties with Bill that she was hesitant to end because some part of her wanted to be with her first love forever. She could either experience perfect pleasure with Eric right now, or mull over her pain and misery over Bill some more.

In the end, it was an easy decision: Sookie stepped into the shower and pulled Eric in after her.

The warm water on her skin vaguely reminded her of sun rays splashing onto her in the summertime; it felt so good, and all of her tense muscles loosened. Sookie ran her hands through her damp hair, pushing it out of her eyes so she could see Eric staring at her intently. His arm was back around her hips, and his fingers gently tickled the small of her back. "I've been waiting for this."

"Waiting for what?" Sookie asked, watching as the water washed away the dirt from her body, and she noticed that the shower was not just cleansing her from the filth, but also from all her pain, all her heartache, all her hesitations, her innocence, and parts of her old life that she simply had to let go to embrace her new one. She felt a huge invisible weight lift from her shoulders.

"Just to be next to you with nothing to keep us apart, to feel your flesh against my flesh. We don't need to have sex for it to feel good," he held Sookie closer to him and brought his large hands behind her to place them on her ass, kneading the smooth globes. Sookie's fangs ran out immediately. "But I'd be lying if I said I did not want to have sex you. I want to so bad that I ache."

He pressed himself against Sookie again, rubbing his hardened flesh on her smooth body, and Sookie could feel just how much Eric did ache for her. She moved a bit in Eric's arms so that she could look him in the eye. "What's stopping you?"

Eric made a harsh noise in the back of his throat. "I'm supposed to be training you," he supplied weakly.

She knew she ought to be learning about how to be a vampire, but right now she had a different, stronger need. Sookie reached down and pressed her palm against Eric's cock harsh enough to draw a deep moan out of him. "The night is still young."

He tried to think up another excuse, but his mind was busy on other things, like the fact that Sookie's fingers circled around him and stroked down just the way he liked it: hard and quick. Eric groaned again and brought down his head to rest against Sookie's wet shoulder, running his tongue and fangs across her flesh. "We shouldn't..." Eric protested, almost whining.

"You don't mean that," Sookie argued, pulling on him again, squeezing the head till he twitched in her hand and fluid leaked out from the tip.

"You're right. I don't," he said into the curve of her neck.

That was all the confirmation she needed. Sookie pushed him up against the wall of the shower, her hand working faster and harsher around his cock. When she felt Eric's body tighten up against hers, she pierced his skin with her fangs, right above his nipple. Her tongue swirling over it till it was as hard as a pebble and she tasted his blood on her tongue for the first time since she was turned.

Eric bit Sookie's neck and came violently in her hand.

* * *

"Feed off the woman. She's still glamored, so she won't feel pain," Eric told her as he pulled on his clean clothes. "I am going to go get the car."

Sookie looked at him with wide eyes. "You're leaving me alone?" Her hair was still wet from the shower and clinging to her head. "What if something happens?"

Eric cupped her cheek with his large hand. "Nothing will happen, Sookie. You're just going to be here, feeding off this woman. A vampire won't be able to come in without her consent." He grabbed his car keys from his pants pocket. "Besides, I'll only be gone for a couple of minutes tops."

"What if I kill her?" Sookie asked in a hushed voice.

"You know how to stop, so you need not worry that you'll kill her," Eric said, walking toward the door.

She wasn't convinced. Sookie stopped before on her own, but she was still so young and had strong impulses. "How about you do that 'as your maker, I command you' thing?" She really didn't want to kill this woman, but she wasn't sure if she could trust herself.

Eric turned toward Sookie and kissed her lightly on the forehead. "Don't worry, Sookie, nothing will happen. You will stop. You need to have confidence in yourself, and you need to be able to do this without my help." He hoped he didn't sound too harsh, or that Sookie wasn't taking this the wrong way. Eric pulled her close for one quick hug before he opened the door to leave. "I wouldn't leave you alone if I was not absolutely certain that you will not murder that woman. I'll be back before you know it."

He closed the door behind him before Sookie could open her mouth to argue some more.

"Damn you, Eric Northman," Sookie cursed, glaring at the door for a while until the woman's blood finally reached her nose. Her rich red nectar smelled absolutely delightful. She was sitting comfortably on her over-stuffed floral couch, staring off into space. She was in her pajamas with a pale pink robe pulled around her body.

Sookie craved her blood immediately.

She walked over to the middle-aged woman and gingerly sat down next to her on the couch. Sookie brushed her fingertips lightly against the woman's cheeks to attract her attention. "What's your name?"

"Sandra," the woman said in a calm voice. Her eyes were glazed over.

What a nice name for a nice woman. "This won't hurt, Sandra," she promised, before she sunk her fangs into the woman's neck. Sandra's blood was wonderful; it reminded her of warm apple pie fresh from the oven on a crisp autumn day. Her blood flowed down Sookie's throat easily, and Sandra did not move a muscle. Sookie paid attention to the steady patter of the woman's heartbeat as she fed, and when it slowed, she thought of the most disgusting things she could think of, and her fangs retracted with a small _click_.

She licked at the two puncture marks on Sandra's neck till they started to clot, forming delicate scabs. Eric walked back into the house as Sookie was readjusting the collar of Sandra's pink robe.

"Still alive, I see," Eric said with a smile.

"Yes, she is," Sookie answered stubbornly.

"I told you that you'd be fine." Eric took the smallest amount of blood from the woman before he eased her out of her glamored state. He thanked Sandra and told her to lock up her house after they left and go to bed.

With a stomach full of blood, Sookie was ready for whatever training Eric had lined up for her. She had to admit that she was excited; she knew the basics about being a vampire, but now she was ready for the more complicated stuff. "What are we going to do first?" Sookie asked, walking over to Eric's car. Eric, on the other hand, stayed put on the sidewalk. "We're not taking the car yet?"

"Not yet. First, I'll teach you how to be still and how to conceal yourself in the darkness, and to do that, we need a darkened alleyway," Eric told her simply as he strolled down the strip.

What an odd thing to learn how to do; it sounded like he was just going to teach her how to play hide-and-seek. Sookie already knew that game after playing it countless times with Tara and Jason when they were all children. "Okey-dokey," she said, somewhat dismissively. Tonight's lesson was going to be a piece of cake.

They finally spotted an alleyway, and Eric walked down it first. Sookie had to admit that she was a little crept out by it; spiderwebs and trash littered the space, and every now and then a rat or a stray cat scampered past them. She mentally slapped herself—vampires shouldn't be afraid of night critters.

Eric stopped once they were completely concealed by darkness. He spun around on his heel to face Sookie. "When you were made vampire, you naturally still held on to some of your human instincts. For instance, you still fidget from time to time," he explained, eying her intently.

Sookie did not even realize that she was shifting her weight on the balls of her feet restlessly until Eric mentioned it, and immediately, she stopped moving. "Sometimes you appear to be breathing," he continued, taking in the gentle rise and fall of her chest. "When you move, you're noisy. You need to be silent, precise, and quick."

"Well geeze, Louise," Sookie said. How was she supposed to automatically stop breathing after she had been doing it for over twenty-five years?

"I am not meaning to offend you," Eric told her softly, placing a gentle hand on the side of her face. "You're a baby vampire; it is only natural that you still hold onto your human tendencies." His fingers lightly traced her cool lips, and after much effort, Sookie held back a shiver. Eric smiled proudly. He stepped behind her, not touching a single inch of her body, but Sookie could feel his presence coursing through veins. "Let your whole body relax," he said softly into her ear. "If you have an impulse to move, ignore it. Don't breathe; force yourself not to inhale or exhale."

Listening to his instructions, Sookie attempted to still her entire body. As soon as she tried, she realized that it was not an easy task; she wanted to scratch her nose, tuck her hair behind her ear, crack her fingers and her neck, and adjust her clothes out of mere habit. She closed her eyes and tried to be stiff, lifeless.

"You moved," Eric said simply.

Sookie's eyes flew open. "What?" she asked, frustrated.

Eric tapped her hand. "You moved your fingers."

Clenching her jaw, Sookie tried to still her entire body again. She cleared her mind as best she could, and when Sookie finally thought that she might be doing it right, Eric said, "You're breathing."

"I can't do this," Sookie said exasperatedly.

"Yes you can," Eric whispered, placing his hands on her hips. "Try again."

Sookie grumbled and closed her eyes again. She used all her energy to not succumb to her human tendencies until finally, after a moment or so, her body noticeably relaxed. Not a single muscle in her face moved, nor did any part of her body. Sookie looked as lifeless as a porcelain doll. It was as it she ran out of battery power; she was on down time.

She came out of her relaxation just as slowly as she went into it. Sookie's eyes fluttered open and her face broke into a smile. "I did it!" she exclaimed excitedly, so glad that she did it right this time. It felt so weird to not move at all, but was also very tranquil.

"Very good," he said, kissing Sookie softly behind her ear. "When you're hiding, especially from other supernaturals, that is the state you need to retire to, otherwise you'll be caught." He moved to face Sookie, whose eyes were wide with surprise that he moved so fast. "Jealous?" he asked through a smirk.

"I'll never be as fast as you," Sookie said sadly.

Eric laughed. "Well, I am much older than you, so that's to be expected. You'll get faster, though, and if I hold back some, perhaps you'll be able to keep up with me."

Sookie imagined them running through a lively forest in the dead of night as the moonlight illuminated their alabaster skin. "I'd really like that."

They walked a bit until Eric led Sookie back into the woods. "Hiding from humans is easy," he started, "which you'll have to do sometimes. For instance, if you're wanting to feed, you can hide until a human comes by for you to grab, and then drink from." Sookie was certain she'd never do that. "You should also hide if you find yourself around humans who do not approve of our kind and are armed until Pam or I arrive to help you."

"How will Pam know if I need help?"

"You're sisters now. You guys might not have shared blood, but you're bonded together through me. She'll be able to tell your emotions; not as clearly as I can, but if your life is in danger, she'll know," Eric told her. "If you just stand still and hide behind something, a human won't notice you're there." Sookie nodded and Eric continued, "Hiding from supernaturals is far more complicated, though, since they will be able to smell you."

Sookie instinctively sniffed herself. Nope, she didn't stink. She still smelled like the coconut body wash from Sandra's house.

"I just mean your scent. You're a vampire, so you smell like one," Eric said, smiling. "Other vampires will be able to track your scent, as well as Weres and shifters. There are a couple of things you can do to try and mask your scent, but none are very successful. If an undead or two-natured enemy is near, you can bury yourself, hide underwater, hide in a tree, or if a two-natured is after you, you can always run since you'll be faster."

"Hide in a tree?" Sookie said, raising her brows.

Eric nodded. "Just climb up the trunk and hold onto the branches. Want to try it?"

"Come up with me?" Sookie asked.

"Ladies first," Eric said, smiling.

Sookie wrapped her arms around the trunk and pulled herself up enough so that she could get her legs around it, too. She used her legs to push herself up, pressing her body close to the trunk to support her weight. It was a really good feeling, to climb without getting tired, and have enough strength to hoist herself up several feet off the ground. After locating a thick branch that appeared solid enough to hold both their weights, Sookie shimmied over to the branch and lowered herself to sit down on it.

"Fun, isn't it?" Eric asked as he sat down next to her on the branch, his long legs dangling beneath him. "I remember climbing trees when I was a child during the springtime."

"This is my first time," Sookie admitted. "I used to be afraid of falling out and having no one there to catch me."

Eric placed his hand on Sookie's thigh and gave it a gentle squeeze. "You've really adapted well, you know? Far better than I thought you would."

Sookie grinned and laced her fingers with Eric's. "How did you think I'd be?"

He stroked Sookie's hand with the pad of his thumb. "Well, I thought you'd be depressed that you can't sunbathe anymore since you seemed to love it so much. I also thought that you might be mad that I'm your maker, and not Bill."

She thought that hearing Bill's name again would be like another stab in the heart, but thinking about her ex-boyfriend didn't hurt so bad anymore. "I can't imagine anyone being my maker other than you," Sookie said thoughtfully. "Bill's hurt me a lot, I don't know if I could stand an eternity with him, to be honest."

"But you can with me?" he asked with a sly smirk.

Sookie felt her stomach twist up a bit. She didn't know. Sure, he had been a very good maker to her, and now treated her so differently than he did when she was a human. It was such a drastic change that Sookie was hesitant to trust her own feelings. An eternity was a huge commitment. "So far so good," Sookie finally said.

Eric leaned over and lightly kissed the curve of her neck. "You know, you won't be with me every single year," he told her when he felt her anxiety. "After a couple of years, a maker's progeny goes out on her own to explore and live their own life for a while."

That prospect almost frightened Sookie more; she definitely did not want to be undead on her own. "Is that some kind of vampire rule?"

"Yes and no," Eric said. "A maker is supposed to encourage his child to strike out on their own. Eventually, you'll likely want to do some things on your own." Eric wrapped his arm around Sookie's waist and pulled her close. "Hopefully that won't be for a while, though."

Sookie rested her head on Eric's shoulder. "I don't see it happening any time soon." She leaned up and planted a quick kiss on Eric's lips. When she pulled away, Eric brought his hand around to the nape of Sookie's neck, grabbing a fistful of her blond hair and kissed her again. His smooth lips moved against hers easily, licking and nibbling her lower lip before he slid his tongue into her warm mouth. She loved when Eric kissed her like this; he kept her on edge and begging for more. She lost herself in his arms, and suddenly, an eternity with him didn't seem to inconceivable.

She hated it when they broke apart. "It'll be dawn soon. Let's go find a place to crash." He lifted Sookie up in his arms, jumped from the tee, and lowered both of them to the cool ground.

They walked back to Eric's Corvette and drove until they arrived at what appeared to be an abandoned house. All of the lights were out and vines grew up the sides of the house, partially covering some of the windows. It had an eerie look about it, and Sookie was hesitant as hell to get out of the car.

Once they were inside the house, Sookie was actually surprised to see furniture. There wasn't a lot; just enough so that the rooms did not look empty, and all of the furniture seriously needed to be cleaned. The house had a vague scent of mothballs. "Whose house is this?"

Eric shrugged as he looked around for basement door. "No idea. I saw this earlier tonight when I got the car, and thought you'd appreciate not having to sleep in the ground tonight." Finally, after checking five other doors, Eric found the right one. "Bingo," he exclaimed, motioning for Sookie to follow him down the staircase. Sookie grabbed a towel from the nearest bathroom, closed the basement door behind her, and stuffed the towel under the door to keep out the light.

Luck was on their side tonight, for there was a bedroom in the basement with a bed large enough for the two of them to sleep comfortably on. The bedroom was obviously made by the homeowners since the layout was a little wonky and had no windows whatsoever, which was ideal for them.

"Thank you, God," Sookie said as she laid down on the bed.

"You ought to be thanking me," Eric huffed as he crawled in after her.


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N:** Hey everyone! Thanks for all the feedback. Woo, hit 100 reviews last chapter! Keep the feedback coming! It really helps keep me motivated.

Anyway, there's not a lot of Eric and Sookie in this chapter…well, at least compared to other chapters. I figured it was about time to work on some other side storylines. Hope no one minds too much! There will be more of them next chapter though! Enjoy!~

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_**Made**_ – **Chapter 9**

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"Have you heard from Sookie?" Tara called over to Sam from behind the bar as she made a couple of Rum and Cokes for the patrons.

Sam shrugged. "She called me about a week ago." It wasn't a very long or effective conversation, and he still was not sure how he was going to get the time off to go to Shreveport. With Sookie gone, he was down a waitress, and Merlotte's was packed almost every night it seemed. Arlene was already starting to crack from being over-worked.

Tara handed off the glasses to the customers seated at the bar. She turned to face Sam, put a hand on her hip, and whispered, "Do you know what's up with her?" He was so mad at Sookie; something had to have gone wrong.

He nodded.

"What happened to her?" Tara asked him immediately, taking a step closer to Sam. "Tell me." Their friendship might have had its moments, but she still was concerned about Sookie and wanted to know if she was okay.

"After work," Sam said, nodding, and Tara let it go for now. Sam was usually good at keeping his promises.

The rest of the night Tara worked hard, trying not to think about the mess that Sookie likely got herself in. She hated that Sookie messed with vampires; they were no good, and definitely not worth her time. Sure, Tara understood their appeal to Sookie—silence after years and years of mindless chatter—but her life was always threatened when she was with the vampires. Tara really didn't think it was worth it.

But it wasn't her problem, or any her business. She only had room to say that Sookie was a dumb bitch for always going back to Bill, and nothing more. Besides, Tara didn't want to get caught up in Sookie's huge vampire mess, anyway, no matter how much she loved her.

Tara clocked out before she walked into Sam's office without knocking. "Spill," she demanded as she retired into a wooden chair near his desk.

"Well, for starters, Sookie's in Shreveport," Sam told Tara nonchalantly as he finished writing out the bills for the week. He stacked the bills near his car keys so he'd remember to take them with him when he left for the night. "Were you here when that tall, blond vampire came by to collect Bill only a couple of weeks after they started dating?"

She thought about if she was in that night, and then she nodded. He was pretty sexy, Tara decided, but that didn't change the fact that he was dead. "Yeah, I remember him. What does he have to do with anything?"

"Sookie's with him," Sam said simply.

Tara's jaw dropped. "No shit?"

"No shit."

"Why's she with him?"

Sam hesitated. He didn't want to say it out loud; that made it seem final, and he didn't want it to be. He wanted things normal again: when Sookie was human and working for him as a barmaid. If he could go back in time, he'd have kicked Bill Compton out of his bar as soon as he set foot in the place. Sookie's life has just been one big fucked up mess since he came around.

"Sam?" Tara said, pulling him back to his senses.

He sighed. "Apparently Sookie was attacked when Eric was at her house." He folded a sticky-note that he found on his desk absentmindedly. "Well, Sookie's a vampire now." Gosh, that sounded absurd to say.

Tara stared at him as she processed what he had told her. "What the fuck?" she said weakly as tears stung the edges of her eyes. "She can't be. That girl would roll over and die if she couldn't sunbathe."

"Not anymore," Sam said cynically. "Now she'll die if she tries."

She shook her head. "Are you sure?"

A memory flashed in his mind: a little more than a week ago when Sookie came into Merlotte's, he tried to punch Eric but instead nicked his knuckles on something sharp and started to bleed, and then Sookie pounced on him, her fangs down, ready to bite. "Yeah, I'm sure," he said simply, hoping it'd suffice.

"Fucking hell," Tara swore, hiding her face in her hands. There went their close friendship, she thought. "What are you going to do?"

Sam shrugged, feeling next to helpless. "I want to save her, but I don't think I can without…"

"Without what?" Tara asked, lifting her head up in interest.

He leaned in closer to Tara so he could whisper, "Without killing Eric."

Tara shot up from her seat. "What the fuck, Sam? You can't _kill_ a vampire. He'll kill you first before you can even point a stake in his direction."

"You got a better idea?" Sam snapped back. He didn't know much about the bond between maker and child, but he did know that the bond was broken if the maker met the true death. "Besides, I was thinking about going during the day when he's sleeping."

Suddenly, Tara's eyes lit up. "That could work," she said thoughtfully, falling back into the chair. "What about Sookie, though? She'll be a totally different person now that she's a vampire."

"I don't believe that," Sam said at once, staring at his hands.

"Well, she won't thank you for killing Eric. What if she gets violent?" Tara asked.

"I'll deal with her if she does."

Tara snorted and was about to tell Sam that he was being stupid before that idiot Tommy pushed his way into Sam's office. "Hey Sam, I just wanted to tell you that I clocked out."

Sam looked up and glared at his brother. "Don't you know how to knock? We're having a private conversation."

"Ooh, what about?" Tommy asked curiously, taking a couple of steps closer to the pair.

"It's none of your business," Sam chided, already feeling a headache coming on due to his brother's annoying presence.

"Hey, who's this?" Tommy asked, pointing to a picture on Sam's wall. "Is she the waitress that is missing in action?"

Sam glanced over to his bulletin board with all his photographs. "Yeah, that's Sookie."

Tommy's brows furrowed. "She looks familiar," he said as he scrutinized the picture. "I think I've met her before."

"No you haven't," Tara said, sounding frustrated. "She hasn't been back since you started busing the tables." She glanced over at Sam and rolled her eyes. They both shared a mild dislike for Tommy, mainly because he was just a punk.

He had that stupid smirk on his face that Sam always wanted to smack away. "She's a vampire, isn't she?" Tommy asked, running his finger along Sookie's blond hair in the picture.

"How do you know that?" Sam asked immediately, his eyes wide.

"Ha, she _is_ a fanger," Tommy said excitedly before he turned back to Sam. "She's fucking hot, dude. When is she coming back? You think she likes to fuck humans?"

Sam was pissed now. He hauled himself out of his chair and crossed his office to stand right in front of Tommy. "I asked you how you know she's a vampire." Sam narrowed his eyes. "Were you eavesdropping on our conversation?"

"What? No. Why would I do that?" Tommy asked frantically. He didn't want to piss Sam off; Sam provided him with a rental for free, and even Tommy knew that it could be taken away if he acted out of line too much.

"How do you know?" Sam repeated again.

Tommy shrugged. "I am not sure. She just looks familiar." He glanced back at Sookie's picture and tried really hard to remember where he knew her from, but his memory was fuzzy. "I think we've met before," Tommy told Sam simply, shrugging his shoulders before he grabbed his keys and walked out of Sam's office.

Tara and Sam stared at each other long and hard for several moments. "What the fuck was that about?"

Sam shook his head, but he wasn't stupid, he could put one and two together. Tommy knew Sookie was a vampire, said that they've met before, but couldn't quite remember. He was certain that Tommy had been glamored, but whoever did the glamoring likely did not know that Tommy was a shapeshifter, which explained his murky memory. God, what if Sookie fed off him? Finally, he lied, "I have no idea."

"So, are you really going to go to Shreveport?" Tara asked, grabbing her purse from beneath Sam's desk.

"As long as I can take the time off," Sam said, smiling.

* * *

Eric wasn't sure what woke him up so early that night, but he was awake before it was full-night. He brought his hands up to his face and rubbed the sleep out of his eyes lazily. As soon as his vision sharpened, he took in the appearance of the room they crashed in for the daytime.

The room smelled of vampires; not of him and Sookie, but of other vampires he had never met before. There was also a faint stench of decay as if there were dead bodies in the room only a couple days prior and was not properly cleaned since. The wooden floor was stained with layers of dried human blood; some of the blood marks were old, some were fresh. Several empty Tru Blood bottles littered the floor and overflowed the trash can near a mini-refrigerator and small microwave. Back in the corner, there was a long glass cabinet, and inside were numerous different wooden stakes, silver chains of all different lengths, a couple silver flails and maces, and leather floggers with jagged silver teeth at the end of each strip of material.

"Fuck," Eric swore softly. He hadn't realized last night that he brought them right into a vampire nest to rest for the day. How did he not notice?

He had to wake Sookie up. They had to get out of here.

Eric turned over, placed his hand on her shoulders, and shook her frantically. "Wake up, Sookie," he pleaded. He knew it would be nearly impossible to pry his young child from her deep sleep, but he had to. They had to move; they weren't safe here.

Sookie pulled a pillow up from under her body and whacked him on the head with it. She rolled over, mumbling thickly about how it was too early to get up and that she was tired.

"I know you're tired," Eric told her, almost growling at her from frustration. He grabbed her arms and yanked her out of the king-size bed. "Come _on_, Sookie. We have to leave _now_."

"But the sun's not done setting," Sookie protested through a whine, keeping her eyes closed.

"If we do not move, then we're going to get caught," Eric told her, prying her eyelids open as he wrapped an arm around Sookie's waist to keep her on her feet.

Sookie swayed and rested her head against his chest. "Caught by who?" she asked playfully, trying to fall back asleep in his arms.

Eric shook her again. "Caught by the nest of vampires who live here," he whispered.

"Who cares? You're ancient. You can take them on with your eyes closed," Sookie said through a long yawn.

"I cannot take on a nest of vampires by myself, especially if they're old, too," Eric told her hurriedly, lifting Sookie up to hold her in his arms since she was not moving fast enough. "I didn't realize this was a nest. We're just lucky that they went to ground somewhere else for the daytime."

Sookie wrapped her arm around Eric's shoulders and snuggled into the curve of his neck. "So, what's your plan? We can't leave yet since it's not full-night. We'll burn."

Eric worried his lower lip between with his teeth. "We'll stand at the top of the stairs and once the sun has completely set, we'll leave."

So, they waited. It took about ten minutes for the sun to completely set, and once they passed, Eric pulled the basement door open. Sookie screamed and leapt out of Eric's arms.

"What are you doing in our house?" a voice asked.

Standing before them were three vampires; two girls and one boy. They all appeared to be around eleven-years-old, and looked almost identical. Their hair was thick and copper red, eyes a bright green and their noses were sprinkled with light freckles. The two girls were dressed exactly alike: white and yellow plaid sundresses with white penny loafers, their red hair almost fell down to their waists and was pulled back with simple white headbands. Their brother, the clear leader of the nest, wore khaki pants, a green and blue argyle sweater, and his hair was styled neatly.

They looked completely ridiculous in Sookie's opinion; like little dolls.

"We went to ground here this morning," Eric explained, bowing his head to the three vampires. "I did not realize this is a nest until tonight."

The boy's eyes narrowed and put his hands on his hips. "A vampire as old as you should be able to recognize a nest when he sees one."

Eric's lips pressed into a thin line. "I was a little preoccupied. You see," he started, waving this hand in front of Sookie. "This is my child. She's very young, and we came here to train her up."

"So it seems," the boy said, his eyes running up and down Sookie's frame, analyzing her intently. He turned to his sisters, "Alana, Colleen, please lock up our visitors so we can question them."

"Yes, Lorcan," the girls said together before they moved to grab two sets of manacles.

* * *

Pam shivered violently when Eric called her. "They're in trouble."

Alcide glanced at her, raising his brows. "How do you know?" Eric and Sookie were nowhere to be found, and Alcide was fairly certain that Pam was not a psychic.

"Eric called me," Pam said anxiously. "And I can feel his panic through our bond."

He nodded slowly, despite the fact that he really had no idea what Pam was telling him. "Do you know where they are?"

"I have a vague idea," she said, her eyes somewhat glossed over as she tried to pick up Eric's location. "I'll know more the closer we get." She got a flash of worry and pain. "We have to go now. You should probably transform so you don't lag behind too much."

Alcide glared at her before he pulled off his shirt, undid his pants, and transformed into a wolf.

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**A/N: I know this chapter is a bit shorter than my other ones, but that just means that I'll be updating sooner!**


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N: **Told you I'd update soon! =) Thanks guys for all the feedback! A lot of you guys really think that the vampire kids are creepy, ha ha! They kind of are, aren't they? You'll learn more about them in this chapter, like their age, which a lot of you seemed to be curious about. Enjoy!~

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_**Made **_**– Chapter 10**

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There were wrought-iron handcuffs bolted into the floor; Alana buckled down one of Eric's arms while Colleen got the other. "Don't break them or we'll use the silver manacles instead," they warned before they locked up Sookie.

Sookie was frightened; had she still been alive, her heart would have been pounding out of her chest. These vampires had to be older than Eric; otherwise he would have been able to fight them off, but instead he sat clamped down to floor.

They were in a heap of trouble.

Lorcan moved to stand in front of them. Eric, seated on the floor, was almost as tall as the child vampire. Lorcan's expression was blank and he folded his hands behind his back comfortably as if having two vampires chained to his floor was just another mediocre night in his creepy, undead life. "Why are you _really_ here?"

"I already told you," Eric said simply, trying to ignore his embarrassment that he got the two of them into this situation. Instead, he focused on his bond with Pam; her emotions were getting stronger and clearer the closer she got to them. She was angry, but also very, very worried. Well, that made two of them. "I am training my child." He tilted his head toward Sookie, who was glaring daggers at Lorcan and his two sisters.

"How old is she?" Lorcan asked thoughtfully, squatting down to stare intently into Sookie's brown eyes.

Eric pressed his lips together in a thin line. He didn't want to give Lorcan any answers, but he also knew that he ought to corporate whilst in the presence of three vampires who would be difficult to kill. Eric finally said, "I turned her almost two weeks ago."

Lorcan reached out and touched Sookie's blond hair. She immediately pulled back, wanting nothing more than to bite Lorcan's fingers off, but living was important to her, so she held back. "Don't touch me, demon spawn."

Sookie's words only made Lorcan laugh; an evil, heartless chuckle that sent chills down her spine. Lorcan pushed himself back so that he fell onto his bottom and sat, crisscross applesauce, right in between the two larger, chained vampires. Lorcan addressed Eric with a wide grin, "You know she's got fairy blood, right?" Alana and Colleen giggled from behind their brother.

What did that wicked kid just say—that she had fairy blood? Fairies exist too, on top of everything else? Sookie glanced at Eric; his expression was completely blank when he said, "I suspected that she was part-fae after tasting her blood when I turned her."

"You did?" Sookie asked, almost sounding manic due to her building anger. "Why the hell didn't you tell me?"

Eric looked over to Sookie and said, "I wasn't sure, and I didn't want to tell you till I was positive." He dropped her gaze and stared back down at Lorcan. "Some vampires have a nose for detecting fae-blood, I do not."

Lorcan smiled widely since he was one of those vampires with that specific, handy skill. Sookie wanted to smack that disturbing grin right off his freckled face.

"Do you know what powers she's got?" Lorcan asked excitedly. "She's got to be able to do something."

So, she had powers now? Well, maybe that explained the purplish light that came out of her hands whenever she was in danger, but Eric did not know about that, so it did not come as a surprise when he said, "No, I do not."

Lorcan lifted up his right hand and snapped. Alana immediately moved to crouch down to his side. Lorcan stroked Alana's copper hair affectionately, and patted her on the back. "My sister's a witch, as well as a vampire, of course. Perhaps she can help your child use her powers."

Eric was interested, she could tell, but he still said, "If my child wants Alana's help, then of course we will accept your offer."

"How about it, young vamp-fae, would you be up to it?" Lorcan asked.

Again, Sookie wanted to smack him. "Maybe you should ask me when you don't have me chained to your floor."

Lorcan clapped his hands together and rocked back and forth with laughter. "Good point, I suppose. I only have a few more questions, and if you both behave, then maybe I'll unchain you."

How ironic; a demonic child telling _them _that they'll be rewarded for good behavior. Sookie struggled to hold back a sarcastic snort.

* * *

It was a good thing that Alcide was a fast runner in Were form, because Pam didn't slow down at all. As she approached the outskirts of the busy city, Pam couldn't help feeling relieved, and she looked over her shoulder and called out, "We're getting close," and she hoped that Alcide could hear her. Her heeled feet beat down against the sidewalk in loud clicks, not caring what humans saw her, followed by a huge light yellow wolf.

She can really feel Eric's emotions now, so strong, pulsing through their bond. He wasn't as angry anymore, nor scared, but he was extremely apprehensive, anticipating the worst. Pam sped up, hoping she'd get there in time, but made sure that she could still make out Alcide's heavy paws padding down on the sidewalk concrete.

About five more minutes, and she reached the house that Eric was inside. She stood still, trying to calm herself so she could enter the house silently. Alcide was right behind her; he sat down on the grass, panting, but not changing out of Were form. Pam inclined her head to him in gratitude, and even patted him on the top of his head. She crouched down so that she could whisper, "The vampires inside are powerful, more so than Eric, otherwise he would have never been in this situation." Alcide nodded his giant, furry head. "Hopefully we won't be attacked."

Pam stilled her body so that she made no unnecessary movements and slithered inside the house through the open door.

* * *

"What are your names?" was Lorcan's next question, looking back and forth between Eric and Sookie. "You both know our names; it's only polite that you both tell us yours."

Eric's eyes shifted to glance at Sookie, giving her a curt nod, before he said, "I'm Eric."

"Sookie," she muttered.

Lorcan looked curious. "Rather odd name isn't it?" he said thoughtfully, addressing Sookie. "I don't think I've met a Sookie before. Is it a nickname?"

Sookie shook her head. "No, it's my real name." Frankly, Sookie thought Lorcan didn't have any room to talk. He had an unusual name, too.

Eric's eyes traveled up towards the ceiling for a split second while the three redheaded vampires were all studying Sookie. He couldn't hear Pam, but he could feel her. Pam was so good at keeping quiet.

Lorcan waved his hands at his sisters so they'd come to join him, and feel free to chime in with questions. Apparently, Colleen had been waiting for this, because she immediately blurted out, "Are you two from Arkansas?"

Eric thought he heard the doorknob open, but he couldn't be sure. The triplets didn't move; they were too distracted by their prisoners. "No, we're not," Eric answered, leaving it at that.

"Where are you from, then?" Colleen continued.

"Shreveport," Eric said, right before Pam tossed herself across the room, landing on two out of the three triplets. She had a large silver chain in her gloved hands and pushed it up beneath their chins while Alcide circled Alana.

The two vampires that Pam had pinned were so much stronger than she was, yet they did not struggle. Instead, they seemed rather intrigued. Pam pulled a wooden stake out of her purse and pressed it into Lorcan's chest. "Let them go or all of you will meet the true death."

Lorcan laughed gleefully before he pushed Pam off the two of them in less than a second and flung her toward the back wall. He cornered her before she could push herself up from the floor, and he pointed the stake at her while Colleen swung the silver chain in her now gloved hands like a jump rope. "Call your wolf off my sister."

"Let them go first," Pam hissed through her descended fangs.

He peered over his shoulder, meeting Eric's eyes sapphire eyes. "I like you, Eric, and I like Sookie, too. Colleen will unchain you, but you are not to leave, nor are you to attack or I will kill you all," he said through a wide grin. "Do you understand?" When Eric nodded, Lorcan glanced at his sister and tilted his head toward the two chained vampires. "Go unlock them."

Pam relaxed considerably when she heard the resounding clicking of the handcuffs as they were pried open. "Alright, Alcide, you can stop now," she instructed, hoping that he'd stay close, just in case.

"Who are you?" Lorcan asked Pam politely once she turned back to him.

She looked over at Eric who nodded before she answered, "I'm Pam; Eric's other child."

"Ah, how fun," Lorcan exclaimed. "You're quite brave, taking on three 1,800-year-old vampires while you yourself cannot be much more than a century old. Your werewolf, too, since he's technically human."

Pam flashed Lorcan a tight smile before she quickly crossed the room so that she was standing by Eric and Sookie. The three of them must have looked a little intimidating, alongside Alcide, since Colleen said, "We meant you no harm."

"None at all; we actually really like you all," Alana said. "You see, we rarely get unexpected vampire visitors—"

"We get plenty of humans, but they are dealt with," Colleen interrupted, smiling.

"So, when some are in our nest and we do not know them," Alana pressed on.

"We get suspicious," said Colleen.

Alana rolled her eyes. "We usually use silver on our unwanted company, but Lorcan told us not to since Sookie's fae—"

"—And we've only met a couple of those before..."

"And then we question them, just to figure out why they're here."

"The ones that do not corporate meet the true death," Colleen said, smiling again.

"The ones that _do_ corporate, we apologize to, and let them go on their merry way."

Lorcan interjected, "But not you guys." He didn't look malicious at all, but Sookie still didn't trust him. He was probably just a good actor. "As we said, we like you all, and it's actually quite lucky for us that you've stumbled upon our nest."

Sookie and Pam both looked at Eric, who finally succumbed and asked, "It is?"

"Yes," Lorcan answered, looking at each of his sisters before he continued. "We've wanted to move to Shreveport for a long time. Do you know the sheriff of your area?"

Eric smirked. "Yes, I'm the sheriff."

Lorcan's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets, but he quickly regained his composure. "So you're Godric's child; the one he spoke so highly of."

Sookie looked up at Eric immediately, searching his expression. Eric's face softened at the mention of his maker, and looked quite taken aback. "You knew Godric?"

"Oh yes," Lorcan said excitedly. "We all did, in fact. We met him about a century and a half after we were made. He was a great vampire." The triplets all bowed their head slightly out of respect.

Eric was as still as a board, but he gave Lorcan a small nod. Sookie reached out to hold Eric's hand and gave it a reassuring squeeze.

"So, what do you say?" Lorcan asked. "Will you allow us to move into your area?"

_Please say no, please tell this creepy kid to go fuck himself, please find the stake that Pam brought and drive it through his heart,_ Sookie thought, hoping it would transfer to Eric through their bond.

But Eric's mind was made up as soon as Lorcan mentioned that he knew Godric. "Of course, Lorcan."

* * *

About twenty minutes later and Eric and Sookie were alone again, walking toward the woods. They haven't said a word; Sookie's still upset at Eric for being so friendly to the triplets that locked them up.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Eric finally asked.

Silence.

Sookie was always a stubborn gal, why should she stop now?

"You don't understand," Eric started, shoving his fists in his pockets as they made their way through the trees. "Had some vampires broken into my home without my consent, sleeping in my space…well, I probably would have done worse than they did."

That wasn't comforting at all in Sookie's mind. "Is that a thing among vampires? Another vampire invades your space and you kill him?"

Eric clenched his jaw. There was so much about vampire politics that Sookie still needed to learn, but that would take years for her to get it down. "If said vampire has a good enough reason to kill another, then yes, he can do it. That vampire would have to appeal to the tribunal, which is what Bill had to do after he killed Longshadow, but he would not be punished."

Sookie shook her head; talk about information overload. "Those kids…there's something off about them."

"It's always frightening to see children who are absolutely lethal just because of their nature," Eric admitted, leading Sookie into the clearing. "But they knew Godric. I couldn't say no."

"I just hope you made the right decision," Sookie said flatly, shrugging her shoulders. What was done was done, and there was no use being upset about it.

Eric laughed. "So do I." He walked a few more paces till he was satisfied with their location. He turned around to face Sookie and put his hands on her shoulders. "It's time to teach you how to fight."

"Hmm, you think?" Sookie asked sarcastically.

He ignored her comment. "Fighting with vampires is different than fighting with humans. We don't waste our time throwing punches. Your fangs are your main weapon, but you need to be quick so that you have the upper hand and can strike." Sookie nodded. "I'll go to attack you, and you try to pin me down. I'll slow down a bit for you, of course," Eric told her, winking. "Ready?"

"Let's do it," Sookie answered, smiling.

Sookie braced herself, and within a second or so, Eric charged at her. She panicked, not knowing where to go, what to do, or how she was going to get his big body down to the ground. Sookie ran to the side and jumped on Eric's back from behind, but just as her arm was about to wrap around his neck, Eric's grabbed her and slammed her into the ground.

"Don't think, just do," Eric instructed, pulling Sookie up.

"Easy for you to say," Sookie spat, getting into position again.

Eric charged and Sookie ran towards the nearest tree, and climbed up the side to distract him. Once she was up high enough, Sookie launched herself off the trunk, landing on her feet and rammed her body into Eric's, pinning him to the tree.

"Good," Eric said before he wiggled free from Sookie's grasp and took off running. Sookie chased after him, dived for his body, and grabbed both his ankles, causing him to trip. Eric went down like a ton of bricks and Sookie maneuvered herself so that she was straddling his hips, pushing the side of his face down into the ground. Eric spat out a mouthful of dirt. "Who taught you how to fight?"

Sookie grinned. "Jason taught me a few things over the years." She helped Eric up, and as soon as he was on his feet, he knocked Sookie off hers, holding her down to the earth with a strong hand around her neck.

"He didn't teach you to always keep your guard up," Eric mused, pulling Sookie up again.

They both took a couple of steps back so that there was space in between them, only this time, Sookie ran towards him, moving in a zigzag line so that Eric had to really focus on where she was. Sookie attacked him from the side and pushed him into a bush before jumping in after him.

"Why'd you move in a zigzag line?" Eric asked, hauling himself out of the bush.

"That's how we're taught to escape alligators…or maybe it was crocodiles," Sookie said.

"Does that actually work?" Eric asked curiously.

Sookie shrugged. "No idea."

Eric put more space between himself and Sookie, and after she steadied herself, he charged. He pushed Sookie against a tree, her back slamming painfully against the rough bark before she heaved Eric down to the ground, holding him in place with her body weight. Eric hitched his legs behind her kneecaps, grabbed onto her shoulders, and rolled them over so that he was now on top of her. "I think you've got pinning down," he said, smiling. "I don't think we should fight for real in case something bad happens, but there's multiple ways to kill a vampire."

"Do tell," Sookie said curiously, wiggling beneath Eric's body teasingly.

He narrowed his eyes, grinned, then continued, "Well, you can stake a vampire," Eric said, ticking off one of his fingers. "You can also drain one, although that's usually human act. You can decapitate a vampire and they'll bleed out. Burning works, too, and severe silver poisoning in our blood will also do the trick." Eric grabbed Sookie's hand, brought it up to his mouth, and placed a soft kiss on her palm. "We also die from light, of course."

Sookie snatched her hand away from Eric's. "You said you didn't know about my powers."

"A little white lie won't hurt," Eric said simply.

She held her hand in front of her face, staring at her palm. "So, the light that comes out of my hands," Sookie started, tracing the lines on her palm with her fingertip lightly. "You think it'll make a vampire burn?"

"I have my suspicions," Eric admitted, kissing the side of Sookie's neck. "What Lorcan said made me think: The because of this connection, and highly evolved. They pull their powers from nature by channeling it, absorbing it, and using it for protection." He paused, deep in thought for a moment or two, and then continued, "Vampires have always been intoxicated by fairies, so it would not be surprising if they'd have some kind of power to hurt us before we hurt them. We cannot know if your light does burn a vampire until we try it out."

Sookie studied Eric's pointed expression. "I'm not trying it on you. I don't even know how to _use _it, and I do not want to hurt you."

Eric rolled off of Sookie's body and sat on the ground next to her. "Alana might be able to teach you how—"

"_No_, I don't want that freak teaching me anything!" Sookie said at once, sitting up. "If light really shoots out of my hands when I'm in trouble, then I will figure out how to do it myself."

"Sookie, you might need to learn how to do it," Eric said pointedly.

She huffed and hauled herself up off the floor. "But it's _Alana_, the little witch who locked me up."

There was ruffling in the woods, and a couple of twigs snapped beneath soft footsteps.

Eric's eyes shot toward where the sound came from, taking a step in front of Sookie so that she was blocked by his large body.

Eerily, Alana appeared out of nowhere, standing right in front of them in the clearing. "Did someone say my name?" the redheaded child asked impishly.

* * *

**A/N: **I know that Claudine's hand-light didn't burn Bill, but neither did the sun while he was in Faery. Who knows if it burns vampires in the real world, right?


End file.
